[A study on 333 patients with adenocarcinoma of the endometrium treated by combined surgery and radiation therapy (author's transl)]. / Analyse de 333 cas de cancer de l'endomètre traités par association radiochirurgicale (1958-1978).

Three hundred and thirty-three consecutive patients with adenocarcinoma of the endometrium treated from 1958 to 1978 by combined surgery and radiation therapy or radiation therapy alone were reviewed. According to the FIGO staging system, there were 204 stage I, 40 stage II, 24 stage III and 20 stage IV. 40 cases of recurrences were also included in this study. The main parameters influencing survival were clinical staging, depth of myometrial invasion, histologic differentiation as well as the possibilities of radical surgery in these patients. Analysis of therapeutic results shows the superiority of pre-operative intra-cavitary irradiation followed by total abdominal hysterectomy and bilateral salpingo-oophorectomy with an 80% actuarial survival at five years in stage I. Primary surgery followed by radiation therapy gives inferior results, particularly in stage II. Treatment by radiation therapy alone should be reserved for inoperable patients after careful evaluation and gives a 35% actuarial survival at five years. The incidence of serious therapeutic complications was 3,6 %. The early diagnosis of endometrial carcinoma by means of systematic endo-uterine explorations in post-menopausal bleeding and the elaboration of combined multi-modality protocol prior to any treatment should lead to a better cure rate for this cancer of increasing incidence.