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UTERINE CANCER: WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW

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The uterus is part of a woman’s reproductive system. It’s a hollow organ in
the pelvis. Cancer begins in cells, the building blocks that make up tissues.
Tissues make up the uterus and the other organs of the body.

The buildup of extra cells often forms a mass of tissue called a growth or
tumor. Tumors in the uterus can be benign (not cancer) or malignant (cancer).
Benign tumors are not as harmful as malignant tumors

Cancer cells can spread by breaking away from the uterine tumor. They can
travel through lymph vessels to nearby lymph nodes. Also, cancer cells can
spread through the blood vessels to the lung, liver, bone, or brain. After
spreading, cancer cells may attach to other tissues and grow to form new tumors
that may damage those tissues.

WHAT CAUSES UTERINE CANCER

When you get a diagnosis of
uterine cancer, it’s natural to wonder what may have caused the disease.
Doctors usually can’t explain why one woman gets uterine cancer and another
doesn’t.However, we do know that women with certain risk factors may be more likely
than others to develop uterine cancer. A risk factor is something that may
increase the chance of getting a disease.

RISK FACTORS

Studies have found the following risk factors for uterine cancer:

  • Abnormal overgrowth of the endometrium (endometrial
    hyperplasia): An abnormal increase in the number of cells in the lining of
    the uterus is a risk factor for uterine cancer. Common symptoms of this
    condition are heavy menstrual periods, bleeding between periods, and
    bleeding after menopause.
  • Obesity: Women who are obese
    have a greater chance of developing uterine cancer.
  • Reproductive and menstrual history: Women are at increased
    risk of uterine cancer if at least one of the following apply: Have never
    had children, Had their first menstrual period before age 12, Went through
    menopause after age 55
  • History of taking estrogen alone: The risk of uterine cancer
    is higher among women who used estrogen alone (without progesterone) for
    menopausal hormone therapy for many years.
  • History of taking tamoxifen: Women who took the drug
    tamoxifen to prevent or treat breast cancer are at increased risk of
    uterine cancer.
  • History of having radiation therapy to the pelvis: Women who
    had radiation therapy to the pelvis are at increased risk of uterine
    cancer.
  • Family health history: Women with a mother, sister, or
    daughter with uterine cancer are at increased risk of developing the
    disease. Also, women in families that have an inherited form of colorectal
    cancer (known as Lynch syndrome) are at increased risk of uterine cancer.

Many women who get uterine cancer have none of these risk factors, and many
women who have known risk factors don’t develop the disease.


SYMPTOMS

The most common symptom of uterine cancer is abnormal vaginal bleeding. It
may start as a watery, blood-streaked flow that gradually contains more blood.
After menopause, any vaginal bleeding is abnormal.

Other symptoms include; Pain or difficulty when emptying the bladder, Pain
during sex, Pain in the pelvic area.

These symptoms may be caused by uterine cancer or by other health problems.
Women with these symptoms should tell their doctor so that any problem can be
diagnosed and treated as early as possible.

TREATMENT

Treatment options for people with uterine cancer are surgery, radiation
therapy, chemotherapy and hormone therapy. You may receive more than one type
of treatment.

The treatment that’s right for you depend mainly on the following: Whether
the tumor has invaded the muscle layer of the uterus, whether the tumor has
invaded tissues outside the uterus, whether the tumor has spread to other parts
of the body, the grade of the tumor, your age and general health

SURGERY: Surgery is the
most common treatment for women with uterine cancer. The surgeon usually
removes the uterus, cervix, and nearby tissues. The nearby tissues may include:
Ovaries, Fallopian tubes, nearby lymph nodes, part of the vagina.

RADIATION THERAPY:
Radiation therapy is an option for women with all stages of uterine cancer. It
may be used before or after surgery. For women who can’t have surgery for other
medical reasons, radiation therapy may be used instead to destroy cancer cells
in the uterus. Women with cancer that invades tissue beyond the uterus may have
radiation therapy and chemotherapy.

Radiation therapy uses high-energy rays to kill cancer cells. It affects
cells in the treated area only.

CHEMOTHERAPY: Chemotherapy
uses drugs to kill cancer cells. It may be used after surgery to treat uterine
cancer that has an increased risk of returning after treatment. For example,
uterine cancer that is a high grade or is Stage II, III, or IV may be more
likely to return. Also, chemotherapy may be given to women whose uterine cancer
can’t be completely removed by surgery. For advanced cancer, it may be used
alone or with radiation therapy.

HORMONE THERAPY: Some
uterine tumors need hormones to grow. These tumors have hormone receptors for
the hormones estrogen, progesterone, or both. If lab tests show that the tumor
in your uterus has these receptors, then hormone therapy may be an option.Hormone therapy may be used for women with advanced uterine cancer. Also,
some women with Stage I uterine cancer who want to get pregnant and have
children choose hormone therapy instead of surgery.The most
common drug used for hormone therapy is progesterone tablets.

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