Title:Multidisciplinary Treatment of Early Stage Endometrial Cancer
Volume: 13
Issue: 6
Author(s): S. C. Cecere, C. Pisano, A. Bamias, M. Di Napoli, S. Rossetti, G. Facchini, R. Tambaro and S. Pignata
Affiliation:
Keywords:
Adjuvant chemotherapy, hormonal therapy, endometrial cancer, prognostic factors, radiation therapy.
Abstract: Endometrial cancer is a highly curable malignancy when it presents as uterine-confined disease, but the prognosis for
metastatic or recurrent endometrial cancer is poor. For those patients which are diagnosed at an early stage, surgery alone may be
adequate for cure and clinical outcome is often favorable, with approximately 80 % of cases surviving at 5 years. However, after primary
diagnosis and treatment, roughly 20-30% of patients are expected to recur within the following 5 years. Adjuvant treatment for
endometrial cancer is not yet clearly defined. FIGO Stage I-III endometrial cancer patients, usually undergo surgery and some of them
are offered adjuvant treatment based on risk assessment. Grade, age, stage are considered all independent risk factors for recurrence.
Radiotherapy (RT) has been considered the adjuvant treatment of choice for decades, being able to reduce local recurrence rate and
improving progression free survival, but without any impact on overall survival. In the last two decades, a shift toward the use of
systemic chemotherapy (CT) in addition or instead of radiation has occurred, although few prospective studies have been performed in
this field.
