About 20% of women who have surgery for gynaecological cancers suffer from complications, according to figures published today.
Some 3% suffer from serious complications, according to the first audit of its kind.
The figures come from analysis of some 1,600 operations performed in ten centres in the UK between 2010 and 2011 as part of the UK Gynaecological Oncology Surgical Outcomes and Complications.
Experts said it was the first time a serious study had been performed of the extent of complications in surgery for women’s cancers.
Researcher Professor Usha Menon, of University College London, said survival rates would be published in the near future.
She said: “In contrast to the wealth of data regarding complication rates following chemotherapy and radiotherapy, there have been no multicentre figures on complication rates following surgery for gynaecological cancers.
"This has meant that we have been unable to properly counsel our patients in preparation for surgery."
She added: "It’s hugely satisfying that we now have robust figures and, while complication rates of one in five may seem high, it’s similar to the only other comparable figure available from an Australian study."
Fellow researcher Dr Andy Nordin said: “We hope to see this electronic data collection process brought into routine practice to improve the information collected by the NHS and to help us to continue to improve surgical outcomes in the UK. The findings, along with the hard work involved in data collection, may well prove useful in other countries too.”
The findings were being presented at the conference of the National Cancer Research Institute in Liverpool, UK.
Institute director Dr Jane Cope said: "Setting nationwide benchmarks will be an important step in helping doctors and patients better understand the effectiveness of current treatment. Doctors and surgeons can then go on to develop improvements, which will give better outcomes for the patients of the future."
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