Uterine Cancer: Symptoms, Causes and Treatments.

January 27th, 2009

terine Cancer is one of the deadliest cancers, which actually start in the lining of the cells in the uterus. The womb or the uterus is a vital part of the reproductive system in a woman.

Type of Uterine Cancer

Uterine cancer may denote various types of cancers, which occur in a woman’s uterus. Uterine sarcomas, commonly known to be leiomyosarcomas are a type of uterine cancer, which occurs in the muscular layer of a uterus. Endometrial cancer is another type of uterine cancer, which originates from the cells that are located in the glands of the uterine lining or the endometrium. Cervical cancer is a different type of uterine cancer, which is known to arise from the lower portion of a uterus. It extends to the transitional zone of a woman’s cervix and connecting to the upper part of her vagina.

Symptoms of Uterine Cancer

A woman having uterine cancer can notice some common symptoms. However, they may differ from person to person depending upon the disease in consideration. Commons symptoms include painful or difficult urination, unusual discharge or vagina bleeding, extreme pain during the time of having sexual intercourse, a typical pelvic lump, abnormal weight loss, pain in the pelvic region and having never breast-fed. In fact, uterine cancer occurs rarely before menopause, during which a woman have regular menstrual periods.

It generally occurs during the time when the regular menstruation cycle stops. If a woman notices reappearance of bleeding at this stage of her life, she should immediately bring it to the attention of her general physician, as there may be a possibility of uterine cancer.

The most common symptom of uterine cancer is abnormal bleeding from a woman’s uterus after her menopause. The bleeding may be in the form of a blood streaked, watery discharge containing more blood. In some cases, a woman may experience lower abdominal pain too.

Causes behind Uterine Cancer

There are different causes of uterine cancer, which have been discovered till date. Diabetes, obesity, polycystic ovaries having prolonged anovulation, nulliparity or having borne not a single child, lack of menstruation, extended usage of tamoxifen for the treatment of breast cancers and taking unopposed estrogen without progestin are some of the valid causes of uterine cancer.

Diagnosing the Disease

Uterine cancer can be diagnosed by endometrial and endocervical sampling. Apart from these techniques, vaginal ultrasonography is also used to detect the thickness of the endometrium because increased thickness of the uterus may determine some serious cancerous change. Apart from this, the Pap test can also be an accurate way detecting uterine cancer but cannot be termed as a reliable source.

Treatment of Uterine Cancer

The treatment of uterine cancer is performed on the basis of grade and stage of the cancer. Abdominal hysterectomy is a standard therapy, which involves in the surgical removal of the woman’s uterus along with both the ovaries and fallopian tubes, washing of the abdominal cavity to determine malignant cells and the selective removal of the aortic and pelvic lymph nodes. Many doctors prefer usage of hormone therapy that removes the possibility of metastatic cancer. Again, women also opt for radiation therapy for the treatment of their uterine cancer.

Although treatment is a possibility for Uterine Cancer, still you should take immediate action after noticing the symptoms. Don’t let it reach a level from where it cannot be cured!

To Your Health!

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