Morbidity after secondary cytoreductive surgery with or without hyperthermic intraperitoneal chemotherapy for ovarian cancer: An analysis of a randomized phase II trial

Objective. To assess postoperative complications after secondary cytoreductive surgery (SCS) with or without hyperthermic intraperitoneal chemotherapy (HIPEC), we conducted an exploratory analysis of patients with platinum-sensitive recurrent ovarian cancer enrolled in a randomized phase II trial.Methods. Complications occurring within 30 days of surgery were graded using Common Terminology Criteria for Adverse Events (CTCAE) version 5.0; only hemoglobin and platelet levels were assessed. Patients were grouped by CTCAE grade >= 3 and < 3 complications.Results. Among 83 eligible patients, 33 (40%) had grade >= 3 complications and 50 (60%) had grade < 3 com-plications; anemia and abdominal infections were the most common. There were no perioperative mortalities. Time to initiation of postoperative chemotherapy for patients with grade >= 3 and grade < 3 events was 34 days (range, 18-60) and 31 days (range, 21-43), respectively (P = .017). Median progression-free survival (PFS) did not significantly differ between patients with grade >= 3 and grade < 3 complications (11.2 months [95% CI: 9.3-14.4] vs 14.9 months [95% CI: 11.3-16.5], respectively; P = .186), nor did median overall survival (OS) (46.9 months [95% CI: 34-NE] vs 68.2 months [95% CI: 52.1-NE], respectively; P = .053).Conclusion. Postoperative complications following SCS with or without HIPEC were associated with slight delays in chemotherapy initiation but did not significantly impact oncologic outcomes. (c) 2023 Published by Elsevier Inc.

Automated summary

In this exploratory analysis of patients with platinum-sensitive recurrent ovarian cancer, we assessed postoperative complications after secondary cytoreductive surgery (SCS) with or without hyperthermic intraperitoneal chemotherapy (HIPEC). The results showed that 40% of the patients had grade >= 3 complications and 60% had grade < 3 complications, with anemia and abdominal infections being the most common. The complications were associated with slight delays in chemotherapy initiation but did not significantly impact oncologic outcomes.