Novel surgical approaches for sampling the ovarian surface epithelium and proximal fluid proteome

The pathogenesis of ovarian, fallopian tube, and peritoneal cancers has been difficult to elucidate despite intense effort. Recently, though, the care of women felt to be at high risk due to a strong family history of breast and/or ovarian cancer or a known germline BRCA1 or BRCA2 mutation has provided potential insight into the development of these malignancies. Risk-reducing surgical removal of the fallopian tubes and ovaries, called risk-reducing bilateral salpingo-oopherectomy (RRBSO), is commonly performed as a laparoscopic procedure to minimize recovery time. We describe here an optimized surgical sampling workflow for analyzing the proteomes of peritoneal, fallopian tube, and ovarian surface epithelial (OSE) specimens collected at the time of laparoscopic RRBSO, a technique which has not been described previously. This methodology presents a unique opportunity for closer examination of the proteomic alterations in the tissues at risk for malignant transformation in women with an inherited susceptibility to ovarian, fallopian tube, and peritoneal cancer development.