Friedman Caroline, Fenster Tamatha
Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Weill Cornell Medical College, New York Presbyterian Hospital, New York, New York.
Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Weill Cornell Medical College, New York Presbyterian Hospital, New York, New York.
J Pediatr Adolesc Gynecol. 2016 Dec;29(6):e91-e94. doi: 10.1016/j.jpag.2016.05.010. Epub 2016 Jun 1.
Malignant ovarian germ cell tumors are rare entities, although they account for a large proportion of ovarian masses in young women. These tumors have traditionally been removed via laparotomy, because of their large size and solid nature. The use of laparoscopy for treatment of adnexal masses in adolescents has been heavily debated and poorly studied to date.
A 16-year-old female patient presented with abdominal pain and an 11-cm adnexal mass on ultrasound. An emergent laparoscopic salpingo-oophorectomy was performed without complication. Pathology revealed a mixed malignant ovarian germ cell tumor.
Laparoscopic fertility-sparing surgery offers many benefits over laparotomy, and should be considered in cases of young women with large adnexal masses, even if potential for malignancy exists.