July 2009 · Vol. 21, No. 07UPDATE: ENDOMETRIAL CANCER
Are lymphadenectomy and external-beam radiotherapy valuable in women who have an endometrial malignancy? Debate over the standard of care continues.
|
Fast Track
The outcome after lymphadenectomy tends to be better when surgery is performed by a trained gynecologic oncologist
The EN.5 and ASTEC trials found no benefit for external-beam radiotherapy in terms of overall, disease-specific, and recurrence-free survival, but a 2.9% decline in local recurrence
The small improvement in local control among women who received external-beam radiotherapy came at a cost: 3% of patients had acute severe or life-threatening toxicity from treatment
|
|
David
G.
Mutch,
MD;
Dr. Mutch is Judith and Ira C. Gall Professor and Director of the Division of Gynecologic Oncology at Washington University in St. Louis. B. J.
Rimel,
MDDr. Rimel is a Fellow in Gynecologic Oncology at Washington University in St. Louis.
Dr. Mutch reports that he has received grant or research support from Lilly and Genentech. He serves as a speaker for GSK, Lilly, and Merck. Dr. Rimel reports no financial relationships relevant to this article.
Endometrial cancer is a great concern in industrialized nations, where it is the most common gynecologic cancer—with incidence increasing every year. Survival is generally very good for women who have low-grade disease confined to the uterus. However, for patients who have high-grade disease, an aggressive histologic type, or other features that suggest a poor prognosis, the cure rate approaches 75%.1
|
