This article examines a preventive surgery known as opportunistic salpingectomy. Developed in British Columbia, the procedure involves removing the fallopian tubes during other routine gynecological surgeries. A study published in JAMA Network Open shows that this intervention cuts the risk of developing the most common and deadly type of ovarian cancer by 78 percent.

Dr. Lucy Gilbert, the head of gynecologic oncology at the McGill University Health Centre, explains that experts now know most of these cancers actually start in the fallopian tubes rather than the ovaries. Ovarian cancer is the deadliest gynecological cancer, and there are currently no reliable screening tests to detect it early.