Salpingectomy & Cancer Prevention

New evidence on ovarian carcinogenesis shows that most ovarian cancers originate from the fallopian tubes rather than from the ovaries. This reveals a better opportunity for ovarian cancer prevention – prophylactic salpingectomy (removing the fallopian tubes while preserving the ovaries), which can effectively reduce ovarian cancer risk without the detrimental effects of hormonal deprivation. The overarching objective of this project is to improve quality of care for prophylactic salpingectomy by identifying provider- and patient-related barriers to utilization and promoting informed decision-making. Our specific aims are: 1) to identify distinct practice phenotypes in adopting prophylactic salpingectomy among physicians and compare physician attributes across these phenotypes; 2) to examine the role of social contagion among physicians in influencing salpingectomy uptake; 3) to ascertain physician perceived barriers to salpingectomy uptake and shared decision-making; and 4) to evaluate quality of decision-making regarding prophylactic salpingectomy from patients’ perspective and identify influencing factors.

Funding source: Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality

Principal Investigator: Xiao Xu