Primary peritoneal cancer (PPC) is a relatively rare cancer that develops most commonly in women. This cancer arises from the lining of the abdominal cavity. PPC is closely related to ovarian cancer, which is the most common type of malignancy that affects the ovaries. For this reason, it is treated the exact same way.
How It Develops
The abdominal cavity is covered in a cellophane-like, glistening, moist sheet of tissue called the peritoneum. It not only protects the abdominal organs, it also supports and prevents them from sticking to each other and allows them to move smoothly within the abdomen. Certain cells in the peritoneum can undergo transformation into cancerous cells, and when this occurs, the result is primary peritoneal cancer. It can occur anywhere in the abdominal cavity and affect the surface of any organ contained within it.
PPC is different from ovarian cancer because the ovaries are usually only minimally affected with cancer.
