Rethinking Risk of Bilateral Oopherectomy With Hysterectomy

For many years, bilateral oopherectomy has been a routine part of hysterectomy. After a certain age, we reasoned that the role of the ovaries in helping women achieve hormonal balance was outweighed by the risks for ovarian cancer, thus offering women their best odds of long-term survival. Yet new evidence on the risks of routine bilateral oopherectomy challenges this conventional wisdom. Is it time we change our practice? Host Dr. Mark Nolan Hill examines the findings with Dr. William Parker, clinical professor of obstetrics and gynecology at the University of California, Los Angeles David Geffen School of Medicine, and a faculty member of the John Wayne Cancer Institute in Santa Monica, California. The lead author of a study published in Obstetrics and Gynecology, Dr. Parker also explores the mechanisms behind the potential risks investigated by his team, ranging from specific cancers to heart disease and all-cause mortality.