OVA1Plus® Risk Assessment for Ovarian Cancer

Ovarian cancer constituted 1.1% of new cancer cases in 2021 and is the 4th leading cause of cancer death in women; however, only 20% of ovarian cancers are found at an early stage1. One of the largest challenges with ovarian cancer is that it is hard to diagnose due to its vague symptoms and many women may not recognize the symptoms until it is in an advanced stage. As with most cancers, the earlier that it is diagnosed, the higher the survival rate is for ovarian cancer.    

Adnexal Masses

In addition to identification of early symptoms, timely clinical assessment and management of adnexal masses can contribute to identifying ovarian cancer at an earlier stage2,3. An adnexal mass is a mass of the ovary, fallopian tube, or surrounding tissues4. These masses are relatively common. Up to 35% of premenopausal women will have an ovarian mass in their lifetime5,6. Although common, 85% of adnexal masses in premenopausal women are benign (non-cancerous)7. 

Evaluating Adnexal Masses

Two questions often arise for healthcare providers when evaluating adnexal masses8:  

  • Does the patient need surgery?
  • Is this mass likely to be ovarian cancer?

A patient with a likely cancerous mass should be referred to a gynecologic oncologist for surgery4. OVA1Plus®, a multivariate index assay, is a helpful tool for healthcare providers to determine whether that patient should be referred out or treated within the practice. 

OVA1Plus with GenPath Women’s Health

GenPath® Women’s Health, a division of BioReference® is pleased to now offer OVA1Plus® to assess ovarian cancer risk in women diagnosed with a pelvic mass. OVA1plus is a reflex process, performed by Aspira Labs, a wholly owned sub of Aspira Women’s Health Inc., which combines two FDA-cleared blood tests, OVA1® and OVERA®, to assess risk of ovarian malignancy in women with adnexal masses when planned for surgery.  OVA1 is performed first and if the OVA1 result is in the intermediate range, will reflex to OVERA. 

The combination of OVA1 and OVERA can help healthcare providers further stratify their patient’s risk of malignancy with a 96% sensitivity (with clinical assessment) and 98% negative predictive value8. 

If you are not a BioReference client and would like to order OVA1Plus, click here to set up a new account. For more information on ordering the test, click here. 

 

References 

  1. https://seer.cancer.gov/statfacts/html/ovary.html
  2. Ovarian cancer screening: Current status and future directions – ScienceDirect
  3. Chan et al. Symptoms of Early Stage Ovarian Cancer. Obstet Gynecol 2022;00:1–6)  DOI: 10.1097/AOG.0000000000004642 
  4. American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists’ Committee on Practice Bulletins—Gynecology. Practice Bulletin No. 174: Evaluation and Management of Adnexal Masses. Obstet Gynecol. 2016 Nov;128(5):e210-e226. doi: 10.1097/AOG.0000000000001768. PMID: 27776072. 
  5. Borgfeldt C, Andolf E. Transvaginal sonographic ovarian findings in a random sample of women 25-40 years old. Ultrasound Obstet Gynecol 1999; 13:345.
  6. Pavlik EJ, Ueland FR, Miller RW, et al. Frequency and disposition of ovarian abnormalities followed with serial transvaginal ultrasonography. Obstet Gynecol
  7. Ueland, F. R., & Fredericks, N. I. (2018). Ovarian masses: Surgery or surveillance. OBG Manag, 30(6), 17-26. 
  8. Bristow RE, Smith A, Zhang Z, et al. Ovarian malignancy risk st ratification of the adnexal mass using a multivariate index assay. Gynecol Oncol. 2013;128:252-259.