Müllerian duct anomalies and their effect on the radiotherapeutic management of cervical cancer / 癌症

ABSTRACT

Radiotherapy plays a major role in the treatment of cervical cancer. A successful radiotherapy program integrates both external beam and brachytherapy components. The principles of radiotherapy are strongly based on the anatomy of the organ and patterns of local and nodal spread. However, in patients with distorted anatomy, several practical issues arise in the delivery of optimal radiotherapy, especially with brachytherapy. Müllerian duct anomalies result in congenital malformations of the female genital tract. Though being very commonly studied for their deleterious effects on fertility and pregnancy, they have not been recognized for their potential to interfere with the delivery of radiotherapy among patients with cervical cancer. Here, we discuss the management of cervical cancer among patients with Müllerian duct anomalies and review the very sparse amount of published literature on this topic.