Although tumours of the ovary are rare in woman under the age of 35 they are not exceptional and they form 15 p. 100 of the cases (17 patients) out of a series of 112 tumours of the ovary which were collected in 7 years. 11 of these patients had only one ovary affected and were able to be treated conservatively. In this way 5 of them were able to carry one or more pregnancies to term and another patient who was lost from observation for two years had to have a second operation to deal with a recurrence in the opposite ovary. Conservative treatment is only permissible if one is absolutely sure that the contro-lateral ovary is normal, and if there is the slightest doubt ovariotomy should be carried out to perform a biopsy. Furthermore the authors suggest that in view of the difficulties of strict supervision for a long term the opposite ovary and tube should be removed and hysterectomy carried out once the patient has had one or two children or when they have reached the age of 40.
PIP: Out of 112 ovarian tumors observed by the authors during a 7 year period, only 17, or 15%, were on women below 35. In 6 of these 17 cases total hysterectomy was necessary; in the remaining 11 cases only one ovary was affected by the tumor, so that it was possible to treat the disease with unilateral ovariectomy, allowing 5 patients to become pregnant. Conservative treatment by unilateral ovariectomy is advisable only in cases when the controlateral ovary is normal. Postoperatory surveillance of such cases is difficult and must go on for years; in cases where the patient is over 40 and has children the opposite ovary should also be removed.