Is Talcum Powder Carcinogenic? What are the Different Types of Ovarian Cancers?: Part 1

May 11, 2016 - How Does Talcum Powder Cause Ovarian Cancer?

Most women have seen a commercial on television or read something on the Internet about talcum powder cancer. Since we typically associated baby powder with all things warm and fuzzy, it is difficult to equate those images with baby powder cancer. In light of the two recent plaintiff awards against Johnson & Johnson in talcum powder lawsuits ($72 million and $55 million), more and more women are coming forward with questions about talc, talc fibers, and whether they should file a talcum powder lawsuit or speak to a talcum powder ovarian cancer attorney.

What are the Different Types of Ovarian Cancer?

It is important to understand the different types of ovarian cancers. Among the more than thirty types of ovarian cancers, the vast majority of those are epithelial ovarian cancer, which has its own subset of cancer types. Epithelial cancer typically appears in women aged 56 and older, although it can occur in much younger women—as young as 15. Caucasian women have higher rates of epithelial ovarian cancer than black women, for reasons not clearly understood by researchers.

How Cancerous Ovarian Tumors Begin

Cancerous ovarian tumors of all kinds start from one of these three common cell types:

·         Cells covering the ovary lining, called surface epithelium cells;

·         Cells which are destined to form a woman’s eggs, known as germ cells, and

·         Cells which release hormones, connecting the ovary structures, known as stromal cells.

Subsets of Epithelial Ovarian Cancer

The subsets of epithelial ovarian cancer include the following:

Epithelial serous—Serous epithelial ovarian cancer makes up about 65 percent of all epithelial ovarian cancer cases diagnosed. Many doctors believe that this type of high grade serous epithelial ovarian cancer begins at the far end of the fallopian tube, rather than the ovary’s surface. Epithelial serous ovarian cancer can be high grade or low grade, which are two distinct tumor types with different underlying behaviors and prognosis. An epithelial high grade serous invasive tumor can be quite aggressive. Serous epithelial tumors can be further subdivided into the following:

• Serous cystadenoma
• Borderline serous tumor
• Serous cystadenocarcinoma
• Adenofibroma
• Cystadenofribroma

Epithelial endometrioid—About one in every twenty cases of epithelial ovarian cancer will be the subtype endometrioid.

Epithelial clear cell—clear cell epithelial ovarian cancer is the least common subtype among epithelial ovarian cancers, with about three out of every 100 diagnoses of epithelial ovarian cancer being clear cell. Clear cell epithelial ovarian cancer is a very aggressive type of cancer, therefore pathologists do not grade it.

Epithelial mucinous—About one in every ten epithelial ovarian cancers will be mucinous tumors. There are significant challenges in the treatment of epithelial mucinous tumors, which can be further classified as:

• Mucinous cystadenoma
• Borderline mucinous tumor
• Mucinous cystadenocarcinoma
• Adenofibroma
• Epithelial mucinous carcinomas are diagnosed at stage I in about half of all patients, as opposed to serous tumors which are typically diagnosed at much more advanced stages.

Epithelial Brenner

Epithelial transitional cell

Epithelial small cell

Epithelial mixed mesodermal

Epithelial unclassifiable—Nearly ten out of every 100 epithelial ovarian cancers are considered unclassifiable, due to the fact that the tumors are undeveloped.  

Facts Which Influence a Woman’s Chance of Recovery from Epithelial Ovarian Cancer

Hereditary ovarian cancer makes up as much as 10 percent of all cases of ovarian cancers. A woman’s chances of recovery from an ovarian cancer diagnosis as well as her treatment options will depend on the following:

·         The grade and stage of the ovarian cancer;

·         The size of the ovarian tumor;

·         The type of the ovarian tumor;

·         Whether the ovarian tumor can be removed through surgery;

·         Whether the ovarian tumor has resulted in abdominal swelling;

·         The patient’s age and general health at the time of the ovarian cancer diagnosis, and

·         Whether this is a new diagnosis of ovarian cancer or a recurrence.