Fatty acid composition and arachidonic acid metabolites in ascitic fluid of patients with ovarian cancer.

Fatty acid composition and arachidonic acid metabolites in ascitic fluids of patients with ovarian cancer were compared to those in the peritoneal fluids of patients with benign gynecologic conditions. Substantial amounts of PGE2, PGF2 alpha, TXB2, and leukotriene B4 were detected in the fluids of the both patient groups. In the group of the cancer patients the concentrations of TXB2 were slightly smaller than those in the control group. In the percentage amounts of the eicosanoid precursor fatty acids there could not be detected differences between these two groups. However, in the peritoneal fluids of the cancer patients the percentage amount of palmitoleic acid (16:1) was significantly higher than that in the control group.