Predictors of Long-Term NovaSure Endometrial Ablation Failure.

STUDY OBJECTIVE: Endometrial ablation using the NovaSure system (Hologic Inc., Marlborough, MA) is 1 of the treatment options for heavy menstrual bleeding (HMB), which has a reported success rate of 81% to 90%. We aimed to identify predictors for NovaSure endometrial ablation failure. This will contribute to a more effective and individualized preoperative counseling. DESIGN: A retrospective multicenter cohort study (Canadian Task Force classification II-2). SETTING: One university hospital and 1 large teaching hospital. PATIENTS: Four hundred eighty-six patients with HMB who had undergone NovaSure endometrial ablation between 2008 and 2014. INTERVENTIONS: The NovaSure endometrial ablation system for patients with HMB. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS: In total, the required characteristics of 486 patients were collected and analyzed. With a median follow-up of 45 months, 19.3% (n = 94) required a secondary treatment and thus were considered NovaSure failures. Multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that younger age (p = .019), a history of sterilization (p = .002), the presence of dysmenorrhea (p < .001) and the presence of an intramural leiomyoma on transvaginal sonography (p = .005) were independent predictors of NovaSure ablation failure. Preoperative hysteroscopy appeared to be a protective factor (p = .001). CONCLUSION: Within a median follow-up of 45 months, 19.3% of patients required a secondary treatment. Identification of specific predictive factors for endometrial ablation failure is important in preoperative counseling and patient selection. In the current era of personalized medicine, doctors and patients will ideally choose the therapy that results in the highest chance of success in the individual case.

Linear regression of postevacuation serum human chorionic gonadotropin concentrations predicts postmolar gestational trophoblastic neoplasia.

OBJECTIVE: Currently, human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) follow-up after evacuation of hydatidiform moles is essential to identify patients requiring chemotherapeutic treatment for gestational trophoblastic neoplasia (GTN). We propose a model based on linear regression of postevacuation serum hCG concentrations for the prediction of GTN. METHODS: One hundred thirteen patients with at least 3 serum samples from days 7 to 28 after evacuation were selected from the Dutch Central Registry for Hydatidiform Moles (1994-2009). The slopes of the linear regression lines of the first 3 log-transformed serum hCG and free ß-hCG values were calculated. Receiver operating characteristic curves were constructed to calculate areas under curve (AUCs). RESULTS: The slope of the hCG regression line showed an AUC of 0.906 (95% confidence interval, 0.845-0.967). Gestational trophoblastic neoplasia could be predicted in 52% of patients with GTN at 97.5% specificity (cutoff, -0.020). Twenty-one percent of patients with GTN could be predicted before diagnosis according to the International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics 2000 criteria. The slope of free ß-hCG showed an AUC of 0.844 (95% confidence interval, 0.752-0.935), 69% sensitivity at 97.5% specificity, and 38% of patients with GTN could be predicted before diagnosis according to the International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics criteria. CONCLUSIONS: The slope of the linear regression line of hCG proved to be a good test to discriminate between patients who will achieve spontaneous disease remission and patients developing GTN. The slope of free ß-hCG seems to be a better predictor for GTN than the slope of hCG. Although this model needs further validation for different assays, it seems a promising way to predict the more aggressive cases of GTN.

Increase in the incidence of gestational trophoblastic disease in The Netherlands.

OBJECTIVE: The objective of this study is to determine the incidence and time trends of gestational trophoblastic disease (GTD) in The Netherlands using population-based data. METHODS: Data on patients with a pathologically confirmed diagnosis of GTD from 1995 to 2008 were obtained from PALGA, a national archive containing all histopathology reports in The Netherlands. Data on number of deliveries were obtained from the Database of Statistics Netherlands. RESULTS: During the study period, 4249 GTD patients were registered. Overall incidence rates of hydatidiform mole (HM), choriocarcinoma and placental site trophoblastic tumor (PSTT) were 1.34 per 1000 deliveries, 3.1 per 100,000 deliveries, and 1.0 per 100,000 deliveries, respectively. Incidence rates of HM increased from 1.02 per 1000 deliveries in 1995 to 1.56 per 1000 in 2001, an increase of 0.091 per year (95% CI 0.081-0.101). After 2001 incidence rates remained constant (increase per year -0.010, 95% CI -0.045-0.024). Maternal age and ethnicity are known to influence the risk of HM. Highest incidences were observed in women under 20 and over 40years of age. The proportion of deliveries accounted for by women over 40years of age increased from 1.5% to 2.9%, whereas women under 20 accounted for 1.5% of deliveries. The proportion of live births of Asian descent increased from 2.6% to 3.7%. CONCLUSION: The incidence of GTD in The Netherlands increased significantly from 1995 to 2008. This can partially be explained by increased maternal age and increased proportion of live births of Asian descent. Part of the increase might result from improved diagnostic techniques. However, these factors do not seem to account for the total observed increase and part of the increase therefore remains unexplained.

Prevalence of cysts in epithelial ovarian cancer.

OBJECTIVE: Ovarian carcinomas mostly appear as large cystic masses. However, the exact prevalence of cysts in epithelial ovarian cancer (EOC) has never been documented as well as the tumor factors that are related to the presence of cysts. Demonstrating the prevalence of cysts in EOC is essential for research focused on predictive and prognostic biomarkers in ovarian cyst fluid. STUDY DESIGN: From 233 patients with primary EOC who underwent surgery, pathological data were collected from pathology reports. Univariate and multivariate logistic regression were used to analyze the relationship between the presence of cysts and other tumor characteristics. RESULTS: Cysts in EOC were present in 83.7% of the patients and were mostly (61%) multilocular. The most common histological subtypes (serous, mucinous, endometrioid, clear cell) contained cysts in more than 85% of the cases. In univariate regression analysis, early FIGO stage, low tumor grade and a large tumor size were significantly associated with the presence of cysts (OR (95% CI)=5.312 (1.81-15.57), 6.906 (2.31-20.66) and 1.169 (1.08-1.27), respectively). In multivariate regression analysis, apart from tumor size, only tumor grade was independently associated with the presence of cysts (adjusted OR (95% CI)=4.234 (1.36-13.22)). CONCLUSIONS: The large majority of all EOCs contained cysts. Histological subtype, FIGO stage, tumor necrosis and age were not associated with the presence of cystic EOC. In contrast, tumor grade and tumor size were independently related to the presence of cystic EOC. This means that cystic EOCs represent a subgroup of larger and more well-differentiated tumors. The evident relationship between the presence of cysts and differentiation grade is interesting from a clinical point of view as grading is especially important for the prognosis and treatment of patients with stage I EOC.