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CRC - Endometrial Cancer

Source: www.cancer.org
Topic: Endometrium
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Sort Desciption: Endometrial cancer is a cancer that develops from the endometrium, the inner ... the endometrium is exposed to estrogen and increases endometrial cancer risk. ...

Content Inside:
Endometrial cancer is a cancer that develops from the endometrium, the inner lining of the uterus (womb).

The uterus is a hollow organ, about the size and shape of a medium-sized pear. The uterus has two main parts. The lower end of the uterus, which extends into the vagina, is called the cervix. The upper part is the body of the uterus, also known as the corpus. (Corpus is the Latin word for body.) The body of the uterus has two layers. The inner layer is called the endometrium. (Endo is Latin for inside and metrium is Latin for uterus.) The outer is called the myometrium. (Myo is Latin for muscle.) The myometrium is the thick layer of muscle that expels the baby during delivery. Hormonal changes during a womanâ s menstrual cycle cause the endometrium to continually change. During the early part of the menstrual cycle the endometrium changes and thickens in order to nourish an embryo in case a pregnancy occurs. After ovulation at the mid-point of the cycle, if pregnancy does not occur, the hormones change and the top layer of the lining begins to die. By the end of the cycle, the dead tissue is shed from the uterus (womb) and becomes the menstrual flow. This cycle repeats throughout a womanâ s life until menopause.

Nearly all endometrial cancers are adenocarcinomas (cancers of glandular cells). More than 75% are endometrioid adenocarcinomas. Although endometrial and endometrioid are spelled somewhat alike, the words are not identical. Endometrioid cancers are a specific type of endometrial cancers. One-third to one-half of endometrioid cancers have glandular areas as well as areas formed by squamous cells (the type of cells found on the surface of the cervix and the skin). If the squamous cells look benign (noncancerous) under a microscope, and the glandular cells look cancerous these tumors are called adenoacanthomas. If the squamous areas and glandular areas both look malignant (cancerous), these tumors are called adenosquamous carcinomas. However, both adenoacanthomas and adenosquamous carcinomas are cancerous tumors. Papillary serous adenocarcinomas (about 10% of endometrial cancers) and clear cell adenocarcinomas (less than 5%) are less common types of endometrial cancer that often grow and spread rapidly. The above cancers of the endometrium develop from its glandular cells. Doctors call this layer of glandular cells the endometrial epithelium.

Three less common uterine cancers that do not come from glandular tissue of the endometrium are called uterine sarcomas and can involve the endometrium. These include (1) stromal sarcomas which develop in the stroma (supporting connective tissue) of the endometrium, (2) malignant mixed mesodermal tumors (MMMT, or carcinosarcomas) which may combine features of endometrial carcinoma and those of sarcomas, and (3) leiomyosarcomas which start in the myometrium or muscular wall of the uterus. These three types of cancer are not discussed in this document because their treatment and prognosis (the outlook for survival) are different from the most common cancers of the endometrium. A document on these three types of uterine cancer is available from the American Cancer Society upon request.

Cancers of the cervix are different from cancers of the body of the uterus and are described in another American Cancer Society document.

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