Characterization of sociodemographic and clinicopathological features in Brazilian patients with vulvar squamous cell carcinoma.

ABSTRACT

AIM: To investigate sociodemographic and clinical-epidemiological profiles of patients with vulvar carcinoma in São Paulo, the largest city of Brazil, to establish a more consistent profile of these features once the incidence of vulvar carcinoma has risen considerably. Data regarding the epidemiological aspects of this tumor are scarce. METHODS: A retrospective study was performed using 300 medical records from patients diagnosed with squamous cell carcinoma of the vulva and surgically treated at A.C. Camargo Hospital in São Paulo, Brazil, from 1978 to 2009. RESULTS: The median age of onset was 70 years, ranging from 15 to 98 years, and most women were white (88.51%). Most patients (83.54%) had little or no schooling and had the lowest survival curve. Many patients were diagnosed in the early stages of the disease (57.09% FIGO IB), 59% had complications due to surgery and 43.71% had disease recurrence, of which about 70% died. CONCLUSIONS: Our study adds 300 Brazilian cases of vulvar carcinoma to the world literature. Given the high rate of disease recurrence and mortality in Brazil, we conclude that regular gynecologic evaluation and educational policies should be reinforced in order to raise awareness for vulvar cancer.