ELEANOR L. HUNTER TUMOR REGISTRY FOR SEROUS CARCINOMA OF THE PERITONEUM

Papillary serous carcinoma of the peritoneum is a perplexing classification of tumor that has led to great confusion among clinicians and pathologists alike.  Since the establishment of papillary serous carcinoma of the peritoneum as a true clinical entity in 1959, less than 450 cases have been described in the literature.  It has been suggested that approximately 10% of women diagnosed with ovarian cancer have papillary serous carcinoma of the peritoneum.  Pathologists describe the histological appearance as identical to epithelial ovarian carcinoma but the ovaries are either normal or absent with a malignancy that diffusely involves the peritoneal cavity.  Serous differentiation may occur in cancers of the ovary, fallopian tube,endometrium and cervix, but clinical investigation reveals that these and other organs do not harbor the primary site.  Investigators have analyzed the morphology of these tumors using histochemical, electron-microscopic and immuno-histologic techniques in an attempt to  identify, characterize and categorize this lesion.  Little attention has been devoted to elucidating the natural history of this disease. 

Tumors arising from the peritoneum are usually classified as mesotheliomas.  Such a classification assigns the same label to several tumors whose histologic patterns and natural histories are quite different.  Establishment of primary peritoneal carcinoma as a distinct entity is crucial to determining the natural history, genetic composition and biologic nature of this disease. 

The Eleanor L. Hunter Tumor Registry was established in cooperation with the New England Association of Gynecologic Oncologists in 1992 to abstract, follow and study cases of primary serous carcinoma of the peritoneum with the following objectives:

1. To determine the incidence
2. To classify it as a disease separate from ovarian cancer
3. To study its natural history
4. To compare treatment results with ovarian cancer
5. To perform epidemiologic and genetic studies
6. To determine survival statistics
7. To answer the following questions:

Eighty-five cases of papillary serous carcinoma of the peritoneum have been recorded of which 40 cases were found to be primary serous peritoneal carcinoma and 45 were superficial cases. An additional 450 others have been gleaned from literature.  Periodic follow-up information is obtained in each case.  Each case is further classified as to whether the ovaries were normal or absent at the time of diagnosis or whether there was only superficial disease present. 

Each confirmed case becomes eligible to participate in a national epidemiologic research study designed to explore primary serous carcinoma of the peritoneum and its current treatment. 

Many of you have assisted us in our work and we are grateful for your cooperation.  A project such as this could not exist without the support of its medical community. 

IF YOU ARE A PATIENT AND WOULD LIKE TO ENTER INTO OUR STUDY:

Click here to complete the  PRESCREEN QUESTIONNAIRE and return to us at the address on the page. 

IF YOU ARE A PHYSICIAN AND WOULD LIKE TO REFER A PATIENT TO OUR REGISTRY:

Please review the Patient Eligibility Criteriato be certain the patient meets the requirements for inclusion in the ELH PSC Registry. Please report to us any cases of serous carcinoma that you have treated in the past year.  Of course, information on prior cases not yet reported would also be appreciated. 

We will require:

• Stat form
• Signed Patient Consent Form
• Operative notes
• Discharge Notes
• Pathology Reports

If you would like to refer a patient to the registry or have any further questions please contact:

Richard E. Hunter, M.D., Principal Investigator (Email:  rhunter647@aol.com )

Jeannine McKinney, CTR, Research Assistant (Email: mckinnej@ummhc.org )

Tel. 508-856-5966

 

We are grateful for the participation of the following advisors to the Eleanor L. Hunter PSC Registry: