Efficacy of endometrial cancer follow-up protocols: time to change?

Abstract Objective The aim of the present study was to analyze relapse rates and patterns in patients with endometrial cancer with the aim of evaluating the effectiveness of current follow-up procedures in terms of patient survival, as well as the convenience of modifying the surveillance strategy. Methods Retrospective descriptive study including all patients diagnosed with endometrial cancer relapse at the Department of Gynecology and Obstetrics of the Complejo Hospitalario Insular-Materno Infantil de Canarias, between 2005 and 2014. Results Recurrence was observed in 81 patients (10.04% of the sample); 66.7% of them suffered relapse within 2 years and 80.2% within 3 years after the termination of the primary treatment; 41.9% showed distant metastases while the rest corresponded to local-regional (40.7%) or ganglionar (17.4%) relapse; 42% of these were symptomatic; 14 patients showed more than 1 site of relapse. Relapse was detected mainly through symptoms and physical examination findings (54.3%), followed by elevated serummarker levels (29.6%), computed tomography (CT) images (9.9%) and abnormal vaginal cytology findings (6.2%). No differences in global survival were found between patients with symptomatic or asymptomatic relapse. Conclusion Taking into account that the recurrence rate of endometrial cancer is low, that relapse occurs mainly within the first 3 years post-treatment and that symptom evaluation and physical examination are the most effective follow-up methods, we postulate that a modification of the current model of hospital follow-up should be considered.

Adenocarcinoma sincrónico de alto grado de endometrio y ovario; a propósito de un caso clínico / Synchronous high-grade adenocarcinoma of the endometrium and ovary; about a clinical case

RESUMEN El cáncer sincrónico endometrial y ovárico (SEOC) representa alrededor de un 5-10% de las neoplasias de endometrio y ovario. Cuando no existe extensión locorregional y presentan un patrón histológico de bajo grado, actúan como si fueran dos tumores primarios independientes, en lugar de comportarse como un cáncer en estadio avanzado. Los mecanismos para diferenciar si su origen es metastásico o por el contrario, son tumores primarios independientes conlleva una gran dificultad y ha generado una importante controversia dentro del estudio de este tipo de neoplasias. En este artículo, exponemos el caso clínico de una paciente de 46 años que presenta un tumor sincrónico de endometrio y ovario en estadio IA, desconocido hasta el estudio histológico de la pieza quirúrgica.

ABSTRACT Endometrial and ovarian synchronous cancer (SEOC) accounts for about 5-10% of endometrial and ovarian neoplasms. When there is no local extension and they present a low-grade histological pattern, they act as if they were two independent primary tumours, instead of behaving as an advanced stage cancer. Therefore, the differentiation of its origin (metastatic or independent primary tumours) is fraught with difficulty and has generated a significant controversy in the study of this type of neoplasms. In this article, we present the clinical case of a 46-year-old patient presenting a synchronous tumor of the endometrium and ovary in IA stage, unknown until the histological study of the surgical sample.