Most aggressive ovarian cancers begin in the Fallopian tubes.

What are the Fallopian tubes?

The Fallopian tubes are two thin passageways, each a few inches long, that connect the ovaries to the uterus. After an ovary releases an egg, the egg travels through a Fallopian tube toward the uterus. The tubes do not make hormones - that is the ovaries’ job.

What do the Fallopian tubes have to do with ovarian cancer?

For nearly two decades, research has shown that most high-grade serous ovarian cancers - the most common and most aggressive kind - do not actually start in the ovaries. They start at the open end of a Fallopian tube and spread to the ovary from there. And because there is no reliable screening test for ovarian cancer, it is usually found late, after it has spread.

Can removing the Fallopian tubes prevent cancer?

Removing both Fallopian tubes takes away the place where most of these cancers begin. Research estimates it cuts the risk at least in half - from about 11 in 1,000 to about 5 in 1,000 for an average-risk woman. The ovaries stay in place and keep making hormones, so tube removal has not been shown to change hormone levels or bring on earlier menopause.

When would this come up for me?

If you are already scheduled for abdominal or pelvic surgery - an appendix, bowel, or gynecologic operation, for example - your surgeon may be able to remove both Fallopian tubes during that same operation. It usually adds less than 15 minutes. One thing to know before anything else: it is permanent, and pregnancy is no longer possible afterward without in vitro fertilization. The choice is always yours.