There’s been a lot of talk about HIPEC (or heated intraperitoneal chemotherapy) as a treatment method for ovarian cancer lately. This type of chemotherapy is heated and given during surgery. As of now, it’s not an up-front treatment that many patients would get — but it is being studied.
IP (intraperitoneal) chemotherapy has been around since the 1970s; the idea is to allow for a higher dose of chemotherapy to be administered, so that more cancer cells can be killed. This type of targeted treatment is beneficial for those cancers that are particularly difficult to treat. Ovarian cancer (like colorectal or gastric cancer) often spreads to the lining surfaces of the abdominal cavity. Traditionally, chemotherapy for these cancers has had a low rate of success.
Read More HIPEC — which is a newer development — can only be administered if the surgeon has been able to remove (or debunk) tumors that have been left behind after surgery to a size of less than 1 cm. HIPEC is unable to penetrate a tumor larger than 1 cm. Once the appropriately-sized cancer cells have been taken out, the doctor usually makes two small incisions one to pump the heated solution into the abdomen and the other to circulate the solution back out. They then continually circulate the sterile, heated chemotherapy solution (which has also been referred to as a heated chemotherapy organ "bath") throughout the cavity. The heated bath can take anywhere from 90 minutes to two hours, and, while women still need additional chemotherapy treatments after surgery, HIPEC allows for higher doses of chemotherapy to be administered and enhances the effectiveness of the treatment. HIPEC seems to be well tolerated by women — though Dr. Kellie Rath, an Obstetrician-Gynecologist with OhioHealth, did say that some people do experience increased fatigue and a longer recovery time. Because HIPEC delivers chemotherapy directly to the abdomen, it is considered a good option for cancers that have originated or spread to the abdominal cavity, allowing for a greater concentration of the drug exactly where it is needed, without exposing other parts of the body.
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Dr. Kellie Rath is an Obstetrician-Gynecologist at OhioHealth. Read More
