Fertility sparing surgery and borderline ovarian tumours

o determine the oncological outcomes following fertility-sparing surgery (FSS) for the management of Borderline Ovarian Tumours (BOTs). A retrospective analysis of participants diagnosed with BOTs between January 2004 and December 2020 at the West London Gynaecological Oncology Centre was conducted. A total of 172 women were diagnosed; 52.3% (90/172) underwent FSS and 47.7% (82/172) non-FSS. The overall recurrence rate of disease was 16.9% (29/172), of which 79.3% (23/29) presented as the recurrence of serous or sero-mucinous BOTs and 20.7% (6/29) as low-grade serous carcinoma (LGSC). In the FSS group, the recurrence rate of BOTs was 25.6% (23/90) presenting a median 44.0 (interquartile range (IQR) 41.5) months, of which there were no episodes of recurrence presenting as LGSC reported. In the non-FSS group, all recurrences of disease presented as LGSC, with a rate of 7.7% (6/78), following a median of 47.5 months (IQR 47.8). A significant difference between the type of surgery performed (FSS v Non-FSS) and the association with recurrence of BOT was observed (Pearson Chi-Square: p = 0.000; x = 20.613). Twelve women underwent ultrasound-guided ovarian wedge resection (UGOWR) as a novel method of FSS. Recurrence of BOT was not significantly associated with the type of FSS performed (Pearson Chi- Square: x = 3.166, p = 0.379). Non-FSS is associated with negative oncological outcomes compared to FSS, as evidenced by the higher rate of recurrence of LGSC. This may be attributed to the indefinite long-term follow up with ultrasound surveillance all FSS women undergo, enabling earlier detection and treatment of recurrences

Study protocol for a randomised controlled trial on the use of intra-operative Ultrasound Guided Laparoscopic Ovarian Cystectomy (UGLOC) as a method of fertility preservation in the management of benign ovarian cysts

Introduction: The lifetime risk of women undergoing surgery for the presence of benign ovarian pathology in the united kingdom (UK) is 5-10%. Despite minimally invasive surgical techniques, evidence suggests a number of healthy ovarian follicles and tissues are resected intraoperatively, resulting in subsequent decline of ovarian reserve. As such, there is an increasing demand for the implementation of fertility preservation surgery (FPS). This study will evaluate the effect on ovarian reserve following two different surgical interventions for the management of benign ovarian cysts. Methods and analysis: We will conduct a two-armed randomised controlled trial comparing laparoscopic ovarian cystectomy, considered gold standard treatment as per the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (RCOG) Green Top guidelines for the management of benign ovarian cysts, with ultrasound guided laparoscopic ovarian cystectomy (UGLOC), a novel method of FPS. The study commencement date was October 2021 and completion date October 2024. The primary outcome will be the difference in anti-Mullerian hormone (pmol/L) (AMH) and antral follicle count (AFC) measured 3 and 6 months post operatively from the pre-operative baseline. Secondary outcomes include assessment of various surgical and histopathological outcomes including: duration of hospital stay (days), duration of surgery (mins), presence of intra-operative cyst rupture (yes/no), presence of ovarian tissue within the specimen (yes/no) and the grade of follicles excised with specimen (grade 0-4). We aim to randomise 94 patients over 3 years to achieve power of 80% at an alpha level of 0.05. Ethics and dissemination: Findings will be published in peer reviewed journals and presented at national and international conferences and scientific meetings. The Chelsea NHS Research and Ethics Committee have awarded ethical approval of the study (21/LO/036). Trial registration number: NCT0503284

INvestigational Study Into Transplantation of the Uterus (INSITU); a cross-sectional survey amongst women with uterine factor infertility in the UK assessing background, motivations and suitability

Importance: The study summarises the selection pre-screen criteria currently used in the UK for a uterus transplant and highlights the number of women who are suitable to proceed. Objectives: To assess the demographics, motivations, reasons and suitability amongst women with AUFI to undergo uterus transplantation (UTx). Design: A cross sectional survey Setting: An electronic questionnaire was sent via email to women with AUFI who had previously been referred to the UTx research team or approached the Womb Transplant UK Charity. The questions assessed suitability to undergo UTx based on demographic information, perceptions to adoption and surrogacy and reasons why UTx was preferable. Responses were assessed against the study selection criteria. Participants: Women with AUFI Results: 210 women completed the questionnaire. The most common aetiology of AUFI in our cohort was MRKH (68%; n=143) whereas 29% (n=62) had previously undergone hysterectomy. 63% (n=132) of the cohort had previously considered adoption, 5% (n=11) had attempted it, and two (1%) had successfully adopted. The most common reason cited to undergo UTx over adoption was to experience gestation (n= 63; 53%), while 37% (n=44) wanted a biologically related child. 76% (n=160) of participants had previously considered surrogacy, 22 (10%) had attempted it and two (1%) had successfully become mothers using a surrogate. The most common reason to undergo UTx over surrogacy was to experience gestation (n=77; 54%). 15% n=21) were concerned about the legal implications, 14% (n=20) identified the financial cost as a barrier and 8% (n=12) could not consider it due to religious reasons. On adhering to the selection criteria, 65 (31%) women were suitable to proceed with the trial. Conclusion: The study demonstrates that implementing commonly used selection criteria for a UTx led to an attrition rate of more than two thirds of women who requested to initially undergo the process. As more studies present outcomes following UTx, critical assessment of the selection criteria currently utilised is warranted to ensure potential recipients are not being unnecessarily excluded

Evaluating the value of intrapartum fetal scalp blood sampling to predict adverse neonatal outcomes: A UK multicentre observational study.

ObjectiveTo evaluate the value of fetal scalp blood sampling (FBS) as an adjunct test to cardiotocography, to predict adverse neonatal outcomes.Study designA multicentre service evaluation observational study in forty-four maternity units in the UK. We collected data retrospectively on pregnant women with singleton pregnancy who received FBS in labour using a standardised data collection tool. The primary outcome was prediction of neonatal acidaemia diagnosed as umbilical cord arterial pH < 7.05, the secondary outcomes were the prediction of Apgar scores<7 at 1st and 5th minutes and admission to the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU). We evaluated the correlation between the last FBS blood gas before birth and the umbilical cord blood and adjusted for time intervals. We constructed 2 × 2 tables to calculate the sensitivity, specificity, positive (PPV) and negative predictive value (NPV) and generated receiver operating curves to report on the Area Under the Curve (AUC).ResultsIn total, 1422 samples were included in the analysis; pH values showed no correlation (r = 0.001, p = 0.9) in samples obtained within an hour (n = 314), or within half an hour from birth (n = 115) (r=-0.003, p = 0.9). A suboptimal FBS pH value (<7.25) had a poor sensitivity (22%) and PPV (4.9%) to predict neonatal acidaemia with high specificity (87.3%) and NPV (97.4%). Similar performance was noted to predict Apgar scores <7 at 1st (sensitivity 14.5%, specificity 87.5%, PPV 23.4%, NPV 79.6%) and 5th minute (sensitivity 20.3%, specificity 87.4%, PPV 7.6%, NPV 95.6%), and admission to NICU (sensitivity 20.3%, specificity 87.5%, PPV 13.3%, NPV 92.1%). The AUC for FBS pH to predict neonatal acidaemia was 0.59 (95%CI 0.59–0.68, p = 0.3) with similar performance to predict Apgar scores<7 at 1st minute (AUC 0.55, 95%CI 0.51–0.59, p = 0.004), 5th minute (AUC 0.55, 95%CI 0.48–0.62, p = 0.13), and admission to NICU (AUC 0.58, 95%CI 0.52–0.64, p = 0.002).Forty-one neonates had acidaemia (2.8%, 41/1422) at birth. There was no significant correlation in pH values between the FBS and the umbilical cord blood in this subgroup adjusted for sampling time intervals (r = 0.03, p = 0.83).ConclusionsAs an adjunct tool to cardiotocography, FBS offered limited value to predict neonatal acidaemia, low Apgar Scores and admission to NICU