Many women are undergoing major surgery unnecessarily because of a lack of ultrasound experts to diagnose ovarian cancer, researchers say.

Improving the quality of preoperative ultrasound examinations could lead to a decrease in the number of operations on women with suspected ovarian cancer, as benign tumours may be discovered before surgery.

Ovarian cancer is confirmed in nearly 7,000 women a year in Britain.

Ultrasound scans can detect so-called adnexal tumours, which can occur naturally, but can also become cancerous. Recognising the difference often depends on the experience of the ultrasound operator.

In research published online by The Lancet Oncology, Joseph Yazbek, of Guy’s and St Thomas’s NHS Foundation Trust, London, and his team assessed how the quality of gynaeco-logical ultrasonography affected the management of women with suspected ovarian cancer.

Of 165 patients studied, 77 were assigned a “level III” scan conducted by experts, and 73 a “level II” scan by a less experienced ultrasonographer. After the level II scan, 37 per cent were referred for surgery, compared with 22 per cent after the level III scan. A conclusive diagnosis was made in 76 of 77 (99 per cent) patients in the level III group compared with 38 of 73 (52 per cent) in the level II group.

The authors said the number of examiners specialising in gynaeco-logical ultrasonography was low.

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