hard drive - Convert a GPT disk to MBR from XP

I took some files with me on my external HDD while going on vacation. Through a series of events, I ended up storing the data in a NTFS formatted partition defined in a GUID Partition Table. The only computer I have is a Windows XP Home box, which does not have native support for reading GPT's. So far everything I have read online suggests wiping the disk and reformmating to MBR. Is there a way to convert it without wiping out the data or to access the data as is?

Answer

Subject to restrictions inherent in the way that the two partitioning schemes work, gdisk is capable of such a conversion.