Ovarian metastases from colorectal cancer in young women: a systematic review of the literature

Background and purpose In female colorectal cancer patients, a mean proportion of synchronous and/or metachronous ovarian metastases of 3.4% was described. Previous literature showed that young or premenopausal women (≤ 55 years of age) may be more frequently affected. Once ovarian metastases are diagnosed, the prognosis of the patient is generally dismal, with 5-year survival varying from 12 to 27%. The present study is aimed at determining the proportion of young or premenopausal women diagnosed with colorectal cancer who presented with or developed ovarian metastases by reviewing the current literature on this topic. Methods This review was performed by querying MEDLINE and EMBASE databases using a combination of terms: “colorectal neoplasms, colorectal cancer, ovarian neoplasms, Krukenberg tumor, young adult, young age, premenopause.” Studies that indicated ovarian metastases, either synchronous or metachronous (or a combination of the two), in young women were retrieved and analyzed. Results The review identified 14 studies encompassing 3379 young or premenopausal female colorectal cancer patients. In this selected group of patients, a mean proportion of ovarian metastases of 4.6% [95% CI: 4.0;5.4] was found. Conclusions This review showed that approximately one in twenty young female colorectal cancer patients will present with or develop ovarian metastases. Since outcome of this specific oncological pathology is often dismal, this finding is clinically relevant. It demonstrates the need to develop strategies to lower the incidence of ovarian metastases with adequate treatment and counseling of these patients.