Stage IB glassy cell carcinoma of the cervix diagnosed during pregnancy and recurring in a transposed ovary

Surgical Management for Transposed Ovarian Recurrence of Cervical Cancer: A Systematic Review with Our Experience

In early-stage cervical cancer, ovarian metastasis is relatively rare, and ovarian transposition is often performed during surgery. Although rare, the diagnosis and surgical approach for recurrence at transposed ovaries are challenging. This study focused on the diagnosis and surgical management of transposed ovarian recurrence in cervical cancer patients. A 45-year-old premenopausal woman underwent radical hysterectomy, bilateral salpingectomy, and pelvic lymphadenectomy following postoperative concurrent chemoradiotherapy for stage IB1 cervical cancer. During the initial surgery, the ovary was transposed to the paracolic gutter, and no postoperative complications were observed. Ovarian recurrence was diagnosed using positron emission tomography-computed tomography, and a laparoscopic bilateral oophorectomy was performed. A systematic review identified nine women with transposed ovarian recurrence with no other metastases of cervical cancer, and no studies have discussed the optimal surveillance of transposed ovaries. Of those (n = 9), four women had died of the disease within 2 years of the second surgery, and the prognosis of transposed ovarian cervical cancer seemed poor. Nevertheless, three women underwent laparoscopic oophorectomies, none of whom experienced recurrence after the second surgery. Few studies have examined the surgical management of transposed ovarian recurrence. The optimal surgical approach for transposed ovarian recurrence of cervical cancer requires further investigation.

A Unique Glassy Cell Carcinoma (GCC) of the Cervix Diagnosed during Pregnancy—A Case Report

Glassy Cell carcinoma (GCC) of the cervix is classified as a unique, aggressive neoplasm, with different sensitivity to chemotherapy and radiotherapy. It is such an extremely rare tumor that it is practically not observed during pregnancy. Information on the coexistence of cervical GCC with pregnancy is also unique, so it seems extremely important to disseminate it in order to develop the most effective treatment regimen. Additionally, making any decisions regarding therapeutic methods during pregnancy encounters great ethical problems. We present the case of a 26-year-old pregnant woman, 18 weeks gestation, diagnosed with GCC of the cervix, IB3 grade in the International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics (FIGO) scale. Despite the unfavorable prognosis, the use of chemotherapy in a pregnant patient brought on a favorable therapeutic effect, without any negative effects on the fetus. The article also presents a literature review on the epidemiology, pathology, immunohistochemistry, treatment and prognosis of this rare disease.

Glassy cell carcinoma of the cervix: a literature review

Glassy cell carcinoma (GCC) is a histologically aggressive subtype of cervical cancer with rapid growth and early metastases. The prognosis for patients with GCC is poor. This article reviews the literature pertinent to the epidemiology, cytology, pathology, immunohistochemistry, treatment and prognosis of GCC. MEDLINE (PubMed) was searched for all articles or abstracts on patients diagnosed with GCC published (in English) since the original definition by Glucksmann and Cherry, Cancer 1956;9:971. Accurate diagnosis of GCC enables implementation of the correct treatment strategy. Early-stage GCC should be treated with hysterectomy and pelvic lymph node dissection, with adjuvant radiochemotherapy if at least one intermediate or high risk factor for cervical cancer is present. Advanced GCC should be treated with neoadjuvant radiochemotherapy or chemotherapy with the aim of making the disease operable. There is a need for retrospective evaluation of GCC treatment from several centres to explore knowledge about this rare entity. Future studies should explore the role of targeted therapies and the most efficient chemotherapy regimen for the management of GCC.

A case of glassy cell carcinoma of the uterine cervix that responded to neoadjuvant chemotherapy with paclitaxel and carboplatin

Glassy cell carcinoma of the uterine cervix is a rare tumor, and has a poor prognosis because of its aggressive clinical behavior and resistance to radiotherapy and chemotherapy. We report a case of bulky glassy cell carcinoma of the uterine cervix that effectively responded to paclitaxel and carboplatin in a neoadjuvant setting. The patient was a 30-year-old woman who became aware of vaginal bleeding and was referred to our hospital because of a cancerous tumor of the uterine cervix. Physical examination showed the cervical tumor to be approximately 8 cm in diameter with no involvement of the parametrium or vagina. The biopsy results suggested a diagnosis of glassy cell carcinoma. The final diagnosis was glassy cell carcinoma of the uterine cervix, stage 1b2. Neoadjuvant chemotherapy with paclitaxel and carboplatin was administered for downstaging. The response rate was 67.9% (partial response) under magnetic resonance imaging, and elevated serum cancer-related antigen 125 (119 U/ml) and squamous cancer cell antigen (34 ng/ml) were reduced to 34 U/ml and 3.3 ng/ml, respectively. Following neoadjuvant chemotherapy, she underwent radical hysterectomy and adjuvant chemotherapy with the same regimen. The clinical course was very good. We speculate that glassy cell carcinoma is a sensitive tumor to paclitaxel and carboplatin. Further evaluation concerning diagnosis and treatment, however, is needed to improve the prognosis of patients with glassy cell carcinoma.

A case of glassy cell carcinoma of the uterine cervix effectively responding to chemotherapy with paclitaxel and carboplatin

Glassy cell carcinoma (GCC) of the uterine cervix is a highly malignant tumor and has a poor prognosis. As yet, no effective systemic chemotherapy to this tumor has been reported. Here we describe a case of recurrent GCC that responded to paclitaxel and carboplatin combination treatment. The patient, a 32-year-old woman, with clinical staging FIGO IB1 disease had a radical hysterectomy and postoperative radiotherapy. Three months after initial treatment, she had a relapse as peritoneal dissemination, which was confirmed in the second surgery (adnectomy) and which did not respond to platinum-based conventional chemotherapy (cisplatin, adriamycin, cyclophosphamide and carboplatin, etoposide). The recurrent peritoneal tumors responded well to paclitaxel and carboplatin combination treatment. An elevated serum concentration of carcinoembryonic antigen (672 ng/ml) was reduced to 14.4 ng/ml by six such courses. Peritoneal histopathology confirmed a complete response in the third surgery (ileostomy) for adhesive ileus by the radiotherapy. This is the first report of effective systemic chemotherapy with paclitaxel and carboplatin to recurrent GCC of the uterine cervix.

Glassy cell carcinoma of the uterine cervix

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES

Glassy cell carcinoma (GCC) of the uterine cervix is a rare and highly malignant tumor, accounting for only 1%-2% of all cervical carcinomas. The purpose of this study was to investigate the clinical findings, treatment, and outcome of patients with cervical GCC in the south of Israel.

METHODS

Data from the files of 5 patients with cervical GCC who were managed at the Soroka Medical Center, Beer-Sheva, Israel, between January 1961 and June 1999 were evaluated.

RESULTS

Age at diagnosis ranged from 32 to 84 years, with 1 patient pregnant at the time of diagnosis. Vaginal bleeding was the prevailing presenting symptom. The cervical lesion was exophytic in 4 patients and endophytic ("barrel-shaped") in 1 patient. Mean tumor size was 3.9 cm. Three patients with stage IB(1) disease had radical hysterectomy and bilateral pelvic lymph node dissection followed by either external pelvic radiotherapy or brachytherapy or both. All 3 patients were alive without disease 4, 12, and 18 months after initial diagnosis, respectively. One patient with stage IIIB disease had external pelvic radiotherapy alone and died of disease 12 months after initial diagnosis. One patient with stage IVB disease refused treatment and died of disease 3 months after initial diagnosis.

CONCLUSIONS

Cervical GCC is a rare variant of cervical cancer with distinct histologic features and an alleged aggressive clinical behavior. For early-stage disease, the treatment of choice seems to be radical surgery followed by chemoradiotherapy.

Ovarian preservation in the surgical treatment of cervical carcinoma

OBJECTIVES

In the surgical treatment of cervical carcinoma the conservation of ovaries in premenopausal women is a common procedure. To date, however, there have been no controlled studies to prove that the risk of recurrence or death from disease is not elevated among women who do not undergo oophorectomy.

STUDY DESIGN

We performed a matched pairs analysis according to the tumor volume, comparing the outcomes of patients with in situ conservation of >/=1 ovary with those of control subjects who underwent bilateral oophorectomy. From among 658 patients, 150 pairs with International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics stage I disease were matched. Kaplan-Meier survival curves were compared with the log rank test.

RESULTS

Among patients who retained their ovaries 5- and 10-year overall survival rates were 98% and 96%, respectively, versus 97% and 97% for the oophorectomy control group. The corresponding figures for progression-free survival were 95% and 94%, respectively, versus 97% and 93%. Outcomes were equal with sufficient power to detect a 10% difference. Three of 214 patients with conservation of ovaries (1.3%) subsequently required oophorectomy, all because of benign ovarian diseases.

CONCLUSIONS

Our results confirm that ovarian conservation is safe in International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics stage I disease and that the occurrence of subsequent complications in ovaries retained in situ is rare.

Ovarian metastases from cervical carcinomas other than pure adenocarcinomas. A report of 12 cases

Twelve cases of ovarian metastases from cervical carcinomas, most with clinical manifestations of ovarian involvement, are reported. The patients were 23-73 years of age (average, 43 years). The ovarian and cervical tumors were synchronous in eight patients; in three, ovarian tumors were discovered 10 months, 2.5, and 3 years after the detection of a cervical neoplasm. In one patient, the cervical tumor was not discovered until autopsy 7 months after presentation. Four patients had abdominal swelling or distention, three had vaginal bleeding, three had an abnormal Papanicolaou smear, and two had masses discovered during pelvic examination. The ovarian tumors, six of which were bilateral, ranged from 5-17 cm (average, 9.5 cm) in maximal dimension in 11 patients; in the 12th patient, the involved ovary was not enlarged. The cervical tumors were grossly evident in 10 patients. They were usually deeply invasive, often with extracervical extension. Four were squamous cell carcinomas; two, small cell carcinomas; one, a mixed small cell carcinoma and adenocarcinoma; one, a mixed poorly differentiated carcinoid and adenocarcinoma; two, adenosquamous carcinomas; one, a transitional cell carcinoma; and one, an undifferentiated carcinoma. Various features, including bilaterality of the ovarian tumors, the finding that the histologic features of the ovarian tumors typically were unusual for a primary ovarian neoplasm, and the presence of extensive extracervical disease, led to the conclusion that the ovarian tumors were metastatic from the cervix. Although ovarian metastases of cervical carcinoma are uncommon, this series illustrates that, occasionally striking examples with clinical manifestations of ovarian involvement occur.