Endometrial Cancer - Coursework Example

5.2 Types of endometrial cancer As noted above, endometrial cancers begin from the cells that are located in the endometrium or inner lining of the uterus. Further, virtually all cancers that start from the uterus are endometrial cancers (American Cancer Society 2015a); hence, endometrial cancers are the focus of most studies on uterine cancers. Also, as noted above, the other type of uterine cancer is uterine sarcomas, which are less common. Both types of cancers are described next. 5.2.1 Endometrial carcinomas Endometrial carcinoma is defined as “a primary malignant epithelial tumor, usually with glandular differentiation, arising in the endometrium that has the potential to invade into the myometrium and to spread to distant sites” (Tavassoli & Devilee 2003, p. 221). There are various forms of endometrial carcinomas, which are mainly classified as endometrioid and non- endometrioid carcinomas (e.g. papillary serous carcinomas and clear cell carcinomas).

These subtypes of endometrial carcinomas are discussed in this review of the literature. 5.2.1.1 Endometrioid adenocarcinomas Nearly 75 percent to 80 percent of all cases of endometrial cancers are of the type that is classified as endometrioid; hence, endometrioid cancer or adenocarcinoma is the most common form of endometrioid carcinomas (Tropé et al. 2005, p. 830; Amant et al. 2005, p. 491). The term endometrioid refers to various types of glands found in the endometrial region of the uterus, which is of various levels of differentiation and is easily recognizable when viewed using a microscope (Amant et al. 2005, p. 491).

Therefore, endometrioid adenocarcinomas are carcinomas that arise from the aforementioned types of glands. According to the American Cancer Society (2015a), endometrioid adenocarcinomas are composed of cells in glands that are much similar to the normal endometrium. A similar point was expressed by Tavassoli and Devilee (2003, p. 222), where it is noted that an endometrioid adenocarcinoma is “a primary endometrial adenocarcinoma containing glands resembling those of the normal endometrium”.