Endometrial stromal sarcoma: A review of rare mesenchymal uterine neoplasm

Diagnostic Value of Combined BCOR, Cyclin D1, and CD10 in Differentiating Endometrial Stromal Sarcoma From Other Uterine Spindle Cell Lesions

Uterine spindle cell lesions share a dilemmatic overlapped features that needed to be addressed by the pathologist to reach a conclusive accurate diagnosis for its prognostic value and different management decisions. Usage of combined IHC panel can be an aiding guiding tool in this context. The aim of this study is to evaluate the diagnostic value of combined BCOR, Cyclin D1, and CD10 IHC panel in differentiating endometrial stromal sarcoma from other uterine spindle cell lesions. This study included 60 cases categorized into endometrial stromal sarcoma group (ESS) (12 cases high-grade endometrial stromal sarcoma [HGESS] and 18 cases low-grade endometrial stromal sarcoma [LGESS]), malignant uterine spindle cell lesions group (5 cases adenosarcoma [AS], 6 cases leiomyosarcoma [LS], 4 cases carcinosarcoma [CS]), and benign uterine lesions group (5 cases endometrial stromal nodule [ESN], 5 cases leiomyoma, and 5 cases adenomyosis). IHC staining procedure and evaluation for BCOR, Cyclin D1, and CD10 was performed on all studied cases. BCOR IHC staining was positive in all HGESS (12/12) of ESS group cases, with diffuse pattern in 75% of cases. BCOR-diffuse staining pattern was not recorded in any of LGESS (0/18), malignant mesenchymal lesions group (0/15), and also benign lesions group (0/15). Cyclin D1 positivity was observed only in HGESS cases, in parallel with positive-BCOR expression. On the contrary, CD10 was negatively expressed in all HGESS and positive in all LGESS, ESN, and adenomyosis cases. A specificity of 100% and sensitivity of 75% were recorded in differentiating HGESS from malignant mesenchymal lesions (including LMS, AS, and CS) and also HGESS from LGESS when using the combined panel BCOR +ve D /Cyclin D1 +ve / CD10 -ve , considering only the BCOR-diffuse staining pattern. In conclusion, BCOR +ve D /Cyclin D1 +ve /CD10 -ve as a combined panel is 100% specific and with lesser sensitivity in diagnosing HGESS as well as differentiating it from LGESS and other malignant uterine spindle cell lesions.

Uterine Mesenchymal Tumors: Updates on Pathology, Molecular Landscape, and Therapeutics

Background: Mesenchymal uterine tumors are a diverse group of neoplasms with varying biological potential. Many of these neoplasms can have overlapping morphologic similarities, which, in some instances, render their diagnosis and categorization thorough histomorphologic examination inconclusive. In the last decade, an exponential amount of molecular data aiming to more accurately characterize and, consequently, treat these tumors have accumulated. Objective: The goal of this narrative review is to provide a pathologic review, a genetic update, and to know the new therapeutic avenues of primary uterine mesenchymal neoplasms.

The value of surgery and the prognostic factors for patients with recurrent low-grade endometrial stromal sarcoma: a retrospective study of 38 patients

OBJECTIVE

As an indolent malignant tumor, the long-term management of low-grade endometrial stromal sarcoma (LGESS) patients required awareness, especially the management of recurrences. Unfortunately, few studies focused on the treatment of recurrent LGESS. Our study aimed to investigate the prognostic factors and the value of recurrent surgery on recurrent LGESS.

METHODS

This retrospective study consecutively recruited patients with pathologically diagnosed recurrent LGESS at our center from April 1, 2004 to April 1, 2020.

RESULTS

After a median follow-up of 137.0 months (95% confidence interval=85.4-188.6), the 5-year cumulative survival rate of the cohort of 38 patients with recurrent LGESS was 71.1%. The median overall survival (OS) and post-recurrence survival (PRS) was 156 and 89.0 months. Survival analysis showed that patients with younger age, positive estrogen receptor (ER) and optimal abdominopelvic debulking in the first recurrent surgery had better prognosis (p<0.05). Multivariate analysis showed that optimal abdominopelvic debulking in the first recurrent surgery was the only independent prognostic factor for OS and PRS (OS=216.0/35.0 months, hazard ratio [HR]=5.319, p=0.034; PRS=not reached/4.0 months, HR=10.900, p=0.006). There was no significant difference in OS and PRS between patients recurred only once and those recurred at least twice (p>0.05).

CONCLUSIONS

The prognosis of recurrent LGESS was favorable. Optimal debulking of no residual tumor in abdominal and pelvic cavity should be the first choice of treatment for recurrent patients, while preservation of ovary or fertility should not be recommended.

Prognostic Factors in Uterine Sarcoma Based on the Tumor Size Stratification: A Retrospective Study

OBJECTIVE

Uterine sarcoma is a rare malignant gynecological tumor with a poor prognosis. Many studies have identified the clinical stage as an important prognostic factor; however, the heterogeneity of patient distribution in the International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics (FIGO) stage has reportedly required further revision. Therefore, this study retrospectively investigated the factors related to the prognosis of uterine sarcoma, with particular attention to tumor size, which can be evaluated preoperatively.

METHODS

Clinical data were extracted from the medical records of patients with uterine sarcoma treated between January 2010 and January 2023. Kaplan-Meier survival curves were plotted according to clinical factors such as histological type, clinical stage, chemotherapy, and tumor size. Factors that were significant in the univariate analysis were subjected to the multivariate analysis using Cox proportional hazards regression.

RESULTS

Thirty-four patients with uterine sarcoma, comprising 24 (70.5%), five (14.7%), three (8.8%), and two (5.9%) with leiomyosarcoma, undifferentiated sarcoma, high-grade endometrial stromal sarcoma, and low-grade endometrial stromal sarcoma, respectively, were included. Based on the FIGO stage, 15 (44.1%), six (17.6%), three (8.8%), and 10 patients had stage I, II, III, and IV disease, respectively, at the time of diagnosis. All patients underwent surgery as initial treatment; 15 received postoperative chemotherapy. Among the 32 patients with uterine leiomyosarcoma, undifferentiated sarcoma, or high-grade endometrial stromal sarcoma, overall survival differed significantly in the univariate analysis based on disease stage (I + II vs. III + IV) and tumor size (≤10 vs. >10 cm). However, only tumor size was an independent prognostic factor in the multivariate analysis.

CONCLUSION

Tumor size (≤10 vs. >10 cm) may possibly have a prognostic impact on uterine sarcoma.

Endometrial stromal tumors: A clinico-histomorphological spectrum of endometrial stromal tumors with review of literature

BACKGROUND

Endometrial stromal tumors (ESTs) are rare subset of mesenchymal uterine neoplasms. There are heterogeneous morphological, immunohistochemical, and genetic features. Approximately 50% of ESTs occur in perimenopausal women. In 2020, WHO sub-categorized ESTs into four groups: endometrial stromal nodule (ESN), low-grade endometrial stromal sarcoma (LGESS), high-grade endometrial stromal sarcoma (HGESS), and undifferentiated uterine sarcoma (UUS).

OBJECTIVE

To review the morphological spectrum of endometrial stromal tumors.

METHOD

This retrospective study reviewed the histomorphological features of 15 endometrial stromal tumors with respect to atypia, necrosis, mitosis, collagen bands, whorling around vessels, myometrial invasion, and inflammatory cells. Immunohistochemistry markers (CD10, SMA, and ER) along with special stains (Masson's trichrome, toluidine blue) were also studied.

RESULTS

The age of the patients ranged from 32 to 60 years. Three patients were postmenopausal. The most common presenting symptom was vaginal bleeding. Five patients were operated with a clinical diagnosis of uterine fibroid. One patient presented with prolapse with no other complaint. All the 15 patients had total abdominal hysterectomy and salpingo-oophorectomy. One case showed necrosis, eight cases showed collagen bands, all the 15 cases showed whorling around vessels, one case showed vascular emboli, and seven cases showed inflammatory cells. In low-grade cases, one case showed focal atypia and one case showed focal coagulative necrosis indicating infarction. Thirteen cases were LGESS, and one case of ESN and HGESS. All cases were positive for ER and CD10.

CONCLUSION

Endometrial stromal tumors demonstrate extensive permeation of the myometrium as irregular islands with frequent vascular invasion, whorling around vessels, collagen bands, and inflammatory cells. All these features should be observed thoroughly on microscopy by pathologists to clearly differentiate the low-grade and high-grade endometrial stromal tumors, and to understand the overlapping gray areas morphologically as it affects the prognosis of the patient.

Clinical characteristics and prognostic factors of endometrial stromal sarcoma and undifferentiated uterine sarcoma confirmed by central pathologic review: A multi-institutional retrospective study from the Japanese Clinical Oncology Group

OBJECTIVES

Low-grade and high-grade endometrial stromal sarcomas (LGESS and HGESS) and undifferentiated uterine sarcomas (UUS) are rare tumors whose pathological classification and staging system have changed recently. These tumors are reported to contain fusion genes. We aimed to clarify the genetic background, clinical features, prognostic factors, and optimal therapy of these tumors using a new classification and staging system.

METHODS

We analyzed the clinical features and prognostic information of 72 patients with LGESS, 25 with HGESS, and 16 with UUS using central pathological review. Estrogen and progesterone receptors (PgRs) were examined by immunohistochemistry. JAZF1-SUZ12 and YWHAE-NUTM2A/B gene fusions were tested using real-time polymerase chain reaction.

RESULTS

The 5-year overall survival (OS) rates of LGESS, HGESS, and UUS were 94%, 53%, and 25%, respectively. In LGESS, stage IV, incomplete surgery, and absence of PgR were associated with poor OS. The presence of JAZF1-SUZ12 fusion gene was not associated with OS. In HGESS, the relationship between stage and prognosis was unclear. None of the 3 patients with YWHAE-NUTM2A/B fusion gene died during follow-up. Adjuvant chemotherapy was associated with a favorable OS. Incomplete resection of UUS was associated with poor OS; however, residual tumors frequently occurred. Although most patients underwent adjuvant chemotherapy, their prognosis was extremely poor even in stage I disease.

CONCLUSIONS

Prognosis of LGESS is generally good; however, stage IV, incomplete surgery, and PgR-negative tumors are associated with poor prognosis. Adjuvant chemotherapy may be useful for HGESS. Prognosis of UUS is extremely poor, even with adjuvant chemotherapy.

Utero-ovarian low grade endometrial stromal sarcoma, a case report

INTRODUCTION

Endometrial stromal sarcoma (ESS) is a rare malignancy of uterine in middle aged women. There are numerous subtypes for ESS which share the same clinical picture of uterine bleeding and pelvic pain. Consequently, diagnosis and treatment modalities of LG-ESS with metastasis are challenging. However, both molecular and immunological study of samples can be useful.

CASE PRESENTATION

In this case study, we report a 52-year-old woman presenting with the chief complaint of unusual uterine bleeding. There was no specific finding in her past medical history. The CT study revealed enlarged bilateral ovary with a significantly large left ovarian mass and suspicious mass in uterus. By the diagnosis of ovarian mass, patient went under total abdominal hysterectomy with bilateral salpingo-oophorectomy (BSO), greater omentectomy, and appendectomy followed by post-op hormone therapy. Her follow-up was uneventful. The IHC and pathological study of samples revealed incidental LG-ESS uterus mass with metastasis to ovaries despite her primary diagnosis.

DISCUSSION

LG-ESS has low metastasis rate. Surgical modalities and neoadjuvant therapies are recommended base on the stage of ESS. In the following study, we represent a case of incidental LG-ESS with bilateral ovarian invasion who was initially diagnosed as an ovarian mass.

CONCLUSION

Our patient was successfully managed by surgical intervention. Despite scarcity of LG-ESS, it is advised to consider LG-ESS as a differential diagnosis in management of patients with a uterus mass with bilateral ovarian involvement.

Manifestation of an undifferentiated uterine sarcoma in a 51 years old patient and its prognosis: A case report

INTRODUCTION

Undifferentiated uterine sarcoma is a rare histological subtype of uterine sarcoma. This study aimed to summarize the clinical and pathological presentation of this case.

CASE REPORT

A 51-years-old patient was admitted to the clinic because of severe pain in the lower abdomen, and scanty bleeding from the genitals. Gynecological examination revealed an enlarged uterus. Conventional and Doppler transvaginal sonography detected a tumorously altered uterus with a maximum diameter of 20 cm a tumefaction with unclear borders and a diameter of 10 cm, with hyperechoic and hypoechoic fields within the tumefaction, presenting pathological vascularization and reduced values of the (Pulsatile index  ≤ 1) and (Resistance index  ≤ 0.40). Preoperatively, the chest, abdomen, and pelvis were examined. The patient underwent surgery and total abdominal hysterectomy with bilateral salpingo-oophorectomy, and partial omentectomy, with complete removal of the tumor. A pathohistological diagnosis, of undifferentiated uterine sarcoma, was made by excluding other types of uterine sarcomas. At the control examination after completion of chemotherapy, recurrence was ascertained.

CONCLUSION

undifferentiated uterine sarcoma is an aggressive malignant tumor that in most cases shows rapid progression of the disease after complete resection of the tumor, with a poor prognosis.

The role of postoperative radiotherapy in patients with uterine sarcomas: A PSM-IPTW analysis based on SEER database

Objective

The optimal adjuvant therapy for uterine sarcomas remains poorly determined due to its rarity and histological diversity. The purpose of the study is to explore and characterize the association between utilization of radiotherapy and survival outcome in patients with surgically resected uterine sarcomas.

Methods

We collected data regarding uterine sarcomas which were confirmed after total hysterectomy between 2010 and 2018 period from the latest version of the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) database. Initially, 1-, 3- and 5-year survival rate were calculated to predict potential risk factors and possible role of adjuvant chemotherapy and radiotherapy. Propensity score matching (PSM) and inverse probability treatment weighting (IPTW) technique were employed to balance confounding factors in the utilization of additional therapy. Multivariate and exploratory subgroup analyses were respectively conducted to evaluate the impact of adjuvant therapy on overall survival (OS) and cause-specific survival (CSS).

Results

A total of 2897 patients were enrolled in the analysis. Survival benefit at 1-, 3-and 5-year after initial treatment was observed in the group of radiotherapy given, however, poorer prognosis in the group of chemotherapy administration. Accordingly, chemotherapy was enrolled as a confounding factor when stratifying and matching patients by receipt of radiotherapy. Prior to and after PSM-IPTW adjustment, radiotherapy both demonstrated beneficial effect on OS and CSS based on multivariate analysis. Further subgroup analysis indicated radiotherapy improved OS and CSS among a subset of patients in stage II-IV, particularly with uterine leiomyosarcoma, tumor grade IV, bigger tumor size than 100 mm and even with chemotherapy administration.

Conclusions

Adjuvant radiotherapy in uterine sarcomas after hysterectomy might be underutilized, and proper use of adjuvant radiotherapy combined with chemotherapy after surgery in advanced-stage and high-risk patients might improve survival.

Low-Grade Uterine Endometrial Stromal Sarcoma: Prognostic Analysis of Clinico-Pathological Characteristics, Surgical Management, and Adjuvant Treatments. Experience From Two Referral Centers

Objective

Low-grade uterine endometrial stromal sarcoma (LG-ESS) is a rare tumor characterized by an overall good survival but showing a indolent behavior and a variable risk of recurrence. There is no clear consensus on the optimal management of these tumors and no prognostic or predictive factors have been established. With this study, we evaluated the prognostic relevance of several clinical, surgical, and pathological features in patients affected by LG-ESS to identify risk factors associated with recurrence.

Methods

We retrospectively analyzed 52 LG-ESS cases, treated from January 1st, 1994, to May 31st, 2020, in two referral centers. The relationship between recurrence and clinicopathological characteristics as well as surgical treatment was investigated. Risk of recurrence and disease-free survival (DFS) were estimated by Cox regression and the Kaplan-Meier analysis, respectively.

Results

Of 52 patients with LG-ESS, 8 experienced recurrence (15%). The median follow-up was 100 months (SD ± 96, range: 15–336). By univariate analysis, fragmentation/morcellation, tumor size, FIGO stage, higher mitotic count, presence of necrosis, and lymphovascular space invasion (LSVI) resulted associated with a poorer outcome. Conversely, the surgical modality (laparotomic vs laparoscopic and hysterectomy with bilateral salpingo-oophorectomy vs local excision) and pelvic lymphadenectomy were not. Even the different modalities of adjuvant therapy (hormonal therapy, radiotherapy, and chemotherapy) showed no prognostic significance. Tumor fragmentation/morcellation and higher mitotic count resulted independent prognostic variables at multivariate analysis.

Conclusions

This data supports the avoidance of any type of morcellation if LG-ESS is suspected preoperatively. Higher mitotic count and, possibly, tumor size, advanced FIGO stage, necrosis, and LVSI could be exploited to tailor the adjuvant therapy, but these results need to be confirmed in larger prospective studies.

High-Grade Endometrial Stromal Sarcoma: Molecular Alterations and Potential Immunotherapeutic Strategies

Endometrial stromal tumor (EST) is an uncommon and unusual mesenchymal tumor of the uterus characterized by multicolored histopathological, immunohistochemical, and molecular features. The morphology of ESTs is similar to normal endometrial stromal cells during the proliferative phase of the menstrual cycle. ESTs were first classified into benign and malignant based on the number of mitotic cells. However, recently WHO has divided ESTs into four categories: endometrial stromal nodules (ESN), undifferentiated uterine sarcoma (UUS), low-grade endometrial stromal sarcoma (LG-ESS), and high-grade endometrial stromal sarcoma (HG-ESS). HG-ESS is the most malignant of these categories, with poor clinical outcomes compared to other types. With advances in molecular biology, ESTs have been further classified with morphological identification. ESTs, including HG-ESS, is a relatively rare type of cancer, and the therapeutics are not being developed compared to other cancers. However, considering the tumor microenvironment of usual stromal cancers, the advance of immunotherapy shows auspicious outcomes reported in many different stromal tumors and non-identified uterine cancers. These studies show the high possibility of successful immunotherapy in HG-ESS patients in the future. In this review, we are discussing the background of ESTs and the BCOR and the development of HG-ESS by mutations of BCOR or other related genes. Among the gene mutations of HG-ESSs, BCOR shows the most common mutations in different ways. In current tumor therapies, immunotherapy is one of the most effective therapeutic approaches. In order to connect immunotherapy with HG-ESS, the understanding of tumor microenvironment (TME) is required. The TME of HG-ESS shows the mixture of tumor cells, vessels, immune cells and non-malignant stromal cells. Macrophages, neutrophils, dendritic cells and natural killer cells lose their expected functions, but rather show pro-tumoral functions by the matricellular proteins, extracellular matrix and other complicated environment in TME. In order to overcome the current therapeutic limitations of HG-ESS, immunotherapies should be considered in addition to the current surgical strategies. Checkpoint inhibitors, cytokine-based immunotherapies, immune cell therapies are good candidates to be considered as they show promising results in other stromal cancers and uterine cancers, while less studied because of the rarity of ESTs. Based on the advance of knowledge of immune therapies in HG-ESS, the new strategies can also be applied to the current therapies and also in other ESTs.

Novel Therapeutics in the Treatment of Uterine Sarcoma

Uterine sarcomas reflect the diversity of sarcoma as a whole. The most common histologies include leiomyosarcoma, high- and low-grade endometrial stromal sarcoma, and adenosarcoma. These are clinically and biologically heterogeneous diseases that are challenging to treat in the advanced setting. Recent advances in our understanding of the cancer biology of uterine sarcomas has improved diagnostic evaluation and therapeutic management. Promising approaches for patients with advanced uterine leiomyosarcoma include targeting DNA damage repair pathways and depleting immunosuppressive macrophage populations. A subset of endometrial stromal sarcomas harbor potentially actionable alterations in the Wnt, cyclin D-CDK4/6-Rb, and MDM2-p53 pathways. There remains an urgent need to translate molecular findings into prospective clinical trials of novel agents for patients with these diseases; progress will depend on academic collaborations and enrollment of patients with uterine sarcoma in biomarker-driven basket studies.

New Insights into Hormonal Therapies in Uterine Sarcomas

Simple Summary

Uterine sarcomas are rare mesenchymal malignant cancers, and surgery represents the mainstay of treatment for early-stage disease. In metastatic setting, uterine sarcomas’ treatment includes palliative surgery, a metastases resection, chemotherapy and targeted therapy. Hormonal therapies may also represent an effective option. Frequently, ER and PR are highly expressed in uterine sarcomas patients and they represent a favourable prognostic factor associated with improved overall survival. The scope of the present review is to report the existing evidence and future perspectives on hormonal therapy in uterine sarcomas, with a special focus on aromatase inhibitors, progestins and gonadotropin-releasing hormone analogues, in order to clarify their potential role in daily clinical practice.

Abstract

Uterine sarcoma (US) is a rare mesenchymal malignant cancer type, accounting for 3–7% of uterine malignancies. US prognosis is still poor due to high local and distant recurrence rates. As for molecular features, US may present variable oestrogen receptor (ER) and progesterone receptor (PR) expressions, mostly depending on histotype and grading. Surgery represents the mainstay of treatment for early-stage disease, while the role of adjuvant chemotherapy or local radiotherapy is still debated and defined on the basis of histotype, tumour grading and stage. In metastatic setting, uterine sarcomas’ treatment includes palliative surgery, a metastases resection, chemotherapy, hormonal therapy and targeted therapy. As for the chemotherapy regimen used, drugs that are considered most effective are doxorubicin (combined with ifosfamide or alone), gemcitabine combined with docetaxel and, more recently, trabectedin or pazopanib. Hormonal therapies, including aromatase inhibitors (AIs), progestins and gonadotropin-releasing hormone analogues (GnRH-a) may also represent an effective option, in particular for low-grade endometrial stromal sarcoma (LGESS), due to their favourable toxicity profile and patients’ compliance, while their role is still under investigation in uterine leiomyosarcoma (uLMS), high-grade endometrial stromal sarcoma (HGESS), undifferentiated uterine sarcoma (USS) and other rarer US. The present review aims to analyse the existing evidence and future perspectives on hormonal therapies in US, in order to clarify their potential role in daily clinical practice.

MR Imaging of uterine sarcomas: a comprehensive review with radiologic-pathologic correlation

The aim of this article is to summarize the MRI features of each sarcoma subtype and to correlate them with its pathological findings. Literature review through PubMed/Medline database to identify relevant articles on uterine sarcomas, with a special emphasis on their MRI findings and pathological features. While several, more generalistic, MRI findings of a uterine tumour should raise suspicion for malignancy (including irregular contour, intra-tumoral necrosis/hemorrhage and low ADC values), some particular features may suggest their specific histological subtype such as the gross lymphovascular invasion associated with endometrial stromal sarcomas, the "bag of worms" appearance of the low-grade endometrial stromal sarcoma and the "lattice-like" aspect of adenosarcomas which results from the mixed composition of solid and multiseptated cystic components. Knowledge of the different histological uterine sarcoma subtypes, their specific MRI features and comprehension of their pathological background allows for a more confident diagnosis and may indicate the correct histological subtype.

New Aspects of Sarcomas of Uterine Corpus-A Brief Narrative Review

Sarcomas of the uterine corpus are rare malignant neoplasms, which are further classified into mesenchymal tumors, and mixed (epithelial plus mesenchymal) tumors. The main issues concerning these neoplasms are the small number of clinical trials, insufficient data from evidence-based medicine, insignificant interest from the pharmaceutical industry, all of which close a vicious circle. The low frequency of these malignancies implies insufficient experience in the diagnosis, hence incomplete surgical and complex treatment. Additionally, the rarity of these sarcomas makes it very difficult to develop clinical practice guidelines. Preoperative diagnosis, neoadjuvant and adjuvant chemoradiation, target and hormone therapies still raise many controversies. Disagreements about the role and type of surgical treatment are also often observed in medical literature. There are still insufficient data about the role of pelvic lymph node dissection and fertility-sparing surgery. Pathologists’ experience is of paramount importance for an accurate diagnosis. Additionally, genetics examinations become part of diagnosis in some sarcomas of the uterine corpus. Some gene mutations observed in uterine sarcomas are associated with different outcomes. Therefore, a development of molecular classification of uterine sarcomas should be considered in the future. In this review, we focus on the epidemiology, pathogenesis, pathology, diagnosis and treatment of the following sarcomas of the uterine corpus: leiomyosarcoma, low- and high-grade endometrial stromal sarcomas, undifferentiated sarcoma and adenosarcoma. Uterine carcinosarcomas are excluded as they represent an epithelial tumor rather than a true sarcoma.

Isolated ureteral extrauterine endometrial stromal sarcoma: an unusual presentation

Extrauterine endometrial stromal sarcomas (EUESSs) are rare tumours occurring without primary uterine involvement. They are classified as primary or secondary, depending on uterine involvement by stromal sarcomas. A 56-year-old woman who earlier underwent bilateral modified radical mastectomy for adenocarcinoma and total abdominal hysterectomy for endometrial stromal sarcoma, followed by tamoxifen therapy, presented with left loin pain. On evaluation, she had a left renal calculus with hydroureteronephrosis. Before percutaneous nephrolithotripsy, ureteroscopy revealed a polypoidal mass that was diagnosed as EUESS. The mass arose primarily within the ureteral lumen, with periureteric tissue uninvolved. She underwent left radical nephroureterectomy with adjuvant hormonal treatment. This is probably the first case of EUESS arising de novo from within the ureteral lumen without endometriosis, to be reported in medical literature. Immunohistochemistry facilitates earlier diagnosis. Cytoreductive surgery is the definitive treatment and multidisciplinary approach helps in overall survival of the patient.

The prognosis of recurrent low-grade endometrial stromal sarcoma: a retrospective cohort study

Background

The prognosis of recurrent low-grade endometrial stromal sarcoma (LGESS) is little known. This study was to investigate the survival outcomes of a cohort of patients with recurrent LGESS.

Methods

Patients with primary LGESS diagnosed and treated for first recurrence confirmed by histology in the study center from February 2012 to June 2019 were retrospectively included. The progression-free interval (PFI) after the last treatment for first recurrence and overall survival (OS) since the diagnosis of first recurrence, which were followed up to June 1, 2020, were compared between groups of various therapy modalities.

Results

Fifty-six patients were included, and 43 patients (76.8%) had definite follow-up outcomes. The 5-year PFI and OS rates were 30.0% (95% confidence interval [95% CI] 29.2–30.8) and 75.0% (68.0–82.0), respectively. In univariate analysis, only fertility-sparing treatment, ovarian preservation and surgical treatment had a significant impact on the PFI (hazard ratio [HR] 4.5, 3.1, and 0.2; 95% CI 1.5–13.1, 1.3–7.3, and 0.1–0.7; and p = 0.006, 0.009 and 0.006, respectively), but no factor was found to be associated with increased mortality risk. After adjusted with hormone treatment or chemotherapy, surgical treatment had significant effectiveness on OS (HR 0.3 and 0.3, 95% CI 0.1–1.0 and 0.1–1.0, p = 0.045 and 0.049, respectively). None of the patients with fertility-sparing treatment had successful conception, and all experienced repeated relapse.

Conclusion

For patients with recurrent LGESS, fertility-sparing treatment or ovarian preservation should not be provided. Surgery is the treatment of choice, and hormone treatment and/or chemotherapy was effective for the survival benefits of surgical treatment.

Supplementary Information

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s13023-021-01802-8.

Novelties of ultrasound imaging for endometrial cancer preoperative workup

INTRODUCTION

Endometrial cancer (EC) is the most frequent gynecological cancer. Transvaginal ultrasound (TVU) plays a leading role in the preoperative workup and often is the first diagnostic instrumental examination. Despite expert hands' ultrasound is recommended to assess myometrial invasion in early stage EC, this method is a strictly operator-dependent examination, and varying degrees of sensitivity and specificity have been reported. The present review aims to provide an update of ultrasound imaging in the preoperative work-up for EC patients.

EVIDENCE ACQUISITION

A double-blind search was performed from May to September 2020. The following keywords: "ultrasound," "transvaginal ultrasound" and "endometrial cancer" were searched in Pubmed search engines, Scopus, and Web of Science. The Prisma statement was followed for the selection of the articles included.

EVIDENCE SYNTHESIS

The initial search provided 958 studies, of which 11 were included in the analysis. non-English articles, not relevant to the purposes of this study, case reports and articles with fewer than 40 cases were excluded.

CONCLUSIONS

TVU sensitivity and specificity in myometrial infiltration and cervical invasion is comparable to MRI but has lower costs, greater patient tolerability, and does not require contrast agents. An expert operator should perform the ultrasound examination in patients with suspected EC The presence of myometrial lesions, such as leiomyomas, could lower the diagnostic accuracy of ultrasound, so special attention should be paid to patients with concomitant uterine lesions.