Abstract
Due to its documented efficacy in improving locoregional control and reducing rates of vaginal vault recurrence, radiation therapy has been used as an adjunct to surgical intervention for the last 5 decades. Several randomized studies have established the role of adjuvant radiotherapy in decreasing local recurrence among patients at intermediate to high risk of local failure. External beam radiotherapy achieves local control at the cost of some morbidity but does not influence overall survival. Intracavitary brachytherapy has emerged as an alternative to external beam radiotherapy due to its overall lower morbidity. Trials are ongoing to determine the potential added benefit of chemotherapy to radiation therapy as well as to explore lower brachytherapy doses in early stage disease. For management of high risk, more advanced stage disease and carcinosarcoma, please see Chaps. 10, 11, and 13, respectively.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution.
Buying options
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Learn about institutional subscriptionsNotes
- 1.
The staging in this chapter reflects the 1988 FIGO staging system unless otherwise noted. However, it is important to know that the following changes were made in the 2009 FIGO staging system: (1) Stage IC was eliminated. Stage IA now represents <50 % myometrial invasion and Stage IB represents ≥50 % myometrial invasion. (2) The designations, Stage IIA and IIB were eliminated. Stage II now represents cervical stromal invasion. (3) Peritoneal washings are no longer factored into disease staging. Stage IIIC disease now consists of Stage IIIC1 (pelvic lymph node involvement) and IIIC2 (para-aortic lymph node involvement).
References
Kohler BA, et al. Annual report to the nation on the status of cancer, 1975-2011, featuring incidence of breast cancer subtypes by race/ethnicity, poverty, and state. J Natl Cancer Inst. 2015;107(6):djv048.
Kimura T, et al. Abnormal uterine bleeding and prognosis of endometrial cancer. Int J Gynaecol Obstet. 2004;85(2):145–50.
Seebacher V, et al. The presence of postmenopausal bleeding as prognostic parameter in patients with endometrial cancer: a retrospective multi-center study. BMC Cancer. 2009;9:460.
Creasman W. Revised FIGO staging for carcinoma of the endometrium. Int J Gynaecol Obstet. 2009;105(2):109.
Creutzberg CL, et al. Surgery and postoperative radiotherapy versus surgery alone for patients with stage-1 endometrial carcinoma: multicentre randomised trial. PORTEC Study Group. Post Operative Radiation Therapy in Endometrial Carcinoma. Lancet. 2000;355(9213):1404–11.
Keys HM, et al. A phase III trial of surgery with or without adjunctive external pelvic radiation therapy in intermediate risk endometrial adenocarcinoma: a Gynecologic Oncology Group study. Gynecol Oncol. 2004;92(3):744–51.
Huh WK, et al. Salvage of isolated vaginal recurrences in women with surgical stage I endometrial cancer: a multiinstitutional experience. Int J Gynecol Cancer. 2007;17(4):886–9.
Jereczek-Fossa B, Badzio A, Jassem J. Recurrent endometrial cancer after surgery alone: results of salvage radiotherapy. Int J Radiat Oncol Biol Phys. 2000;48(2):405–13.
Nag S, et al. Interstitial brachytherapy for salvage treatment of vaginal recurrences in previously unirradiated endometrial cancer patients. Int J Radiat Oncol Biol Phys. 2002;54(4):1153–9.
Petignat P, et al. Salvage treatment with high-dose-rate brachytherapy for isolated vaginal endometrial cancer recurrence. Gynecol Oncol. 2006;101(3):445–9.
Creasman WT, et al. Significance of true surgical pathologic staging: a Gynecologic Oncology Group Study. Am J Obstet Gynecol. 1999;181(1):31–4.
Ben-Shachar I, et al. Surgical staging for patients presenting with grade 1 endometrial carcinoma. Obstet Gynecol. 2005;105(3):487–93.
Mariani A, et al. Low-risk corpus cancer: is lymphadenectomy or radiotherapy necessary? Am J Obstet Gynecol. 2000;182(6):1506–19.
Lee CM, et al. Frequency and effect of adjuvant radiation therapy among women with stage I endometrial adenocarcinoma. JAMA. 2006;295(4):389–97.
Straughn Jr JM, et al. The use of adjuvant radiation therapy in patients with intermediate-risk Stages IC and II uterine corpus cancer: a patient care evaluation study from the American College of Surgeons National Cancer Data Base. Gynecol Oncol. 2005;99(3):530–5.
Nout RA, et al. Long-term outcome and quality of life of patients with endometrial carcinoma treated with or without pelvic radiotherapy in the post operative radiation therapy in endometrial carcinoma 1 (PORTEC-1) trial. J Clin Oncol. 2011;29(13):1692–700.
Aalders J, et al. Postoperative external irradiation and prognostic parameters in stage I endometrial carcinoma: clinical and histopathologic study of 540 patients. Obstet Gynecol. 1980;56(4):419–27.
ASTEC/EN.5 Study Group, et al. Adjuvant external beam radiotherapy in the treatment of endometrial cancer (MRC ASTEC and NCIC CTG EN.5 randomised trials): pooled trial results, systematic review, and meta-analysis. Lancet. 2009;373(9658):137–46.
Hogberg T, et al. Sequential adjuvant chemotherapy and radiotherapy in endometrial cancer--results from two randomised studies. Eur J Cancer. 2010;46(13):2422–31.
McMeekin DS, Filiaci VL, Aghajanian C. A randomized Phase III trial of pelvic radiation therapy (WPRT) versus vaginal cuff brachytherapy followed by paclitaxel/carboplatin chemotherapy (VCB/C) in patients with high risk (HR), early stage endometrial cancer (EC): a Gyencologic Oncology Group trial. In Society of Gynecologic Oncology Annual Meeting. 2014. Tampa, FL.
Viswanathan AN, et al. NRG Oncology/RTOG 0921: A phase 2 study of postoperative intensity-modulated radiotherapy with concurrent cisplatin and bevacizumab followed by carboplatin and paclitaxel for patients with endometrial cancer. Cancer. 2015;121(13):2156–63.
Eltabbakh GH, et al. Excellent long-term survival and absence of vaginal recurrences in 332 patients with low-risk stage I endometrial adenocarcinoma treated with hysterectomy and vaginal brachytherapy without formal staging lymph node sampling: report of a prospective trial. Int J Radiat Oncol Biol Phys. 1997;38(2):373–80.
Alektiar KM, et al. Intravaginal brachytherapy alone for intermediate-risk endometrial cancer. Int J Radiat Oncol Biol Phys. 2005;62(1):111–7.
Pearcey RG, Petereit DG. Post-operative high dose rate brachytherapy in patients with low to intermediate risk endometrial cancer. Radiother Oncol. 2000;56(1):17–22.
Nout RA, et al. Vaginal brachytherapy versus pelvic external beam radiotherapy for patients with endometrial cancer of high-intermediate risk (PORTEC-2): an open-label, non-inferiority, randomised trial. Lancet. 2010;375(9717):816–23.
Creutzberg CL, et al. The morbidity of treatment for patients with Stage I endometrial cancer: results from a randomized trial. Int J Radiat Oncol Biol Phys. 2001;51(5):1246–55.
Shih KK, et al. Pelvic insufficiency fractures in patients with cervical and endometrial cancer treated with postoperative pelvic radiation. Gynecol Oncol. 2013;128(3):540–3.
Wiltink LM, et al. No increased risk of second cancer after radiotherapy in patients treated for rectal or endometrial cancer in the randomized TME, PORTEC-1, and PORTEC-2 trials. J Clin Oncol. 2015;33(15):1640–6.
Alektiar KM, et al. Intravaginal high-dose-rate brachytherapy for Stage IB (FIGO Grade 1, 2) endometrial cancer. Int J Radiat Oncol Biol Phys. 2002;53(3):707–13.
Horowitz NS, et al. Adjuvant high dose rate vaginal brachytherapy as treatment of stage I and II endometrial carcinoma. Obstet Gynecol. 2002;99(2):235–40.
Petereit DG, et al. Outpatient vaginal cuff brachytherapy for endometrial cancer. Int J Gynecol Cancer. 1999;9(6):456–62.
Sorbe BG, Smeds AC. Postoperative vaginal irradiation with high dose rate afterloading technique in endometrial carcinoma stage I. Int J Radiat Oncol Biol Phys. 1990;18(2):305–14.
Nout RA, et al. Quality of life after pelvic radiotherapy or vaginal brachytherapy for endometrial cancer: first results of the randomized PORTEC-2 trial. J Clin Oncol. 2009;27(21):3547–56.
Orton CG. High-dose-rate brachytherapy may be radiobiologically superior to low-dose rate due to slow repair of late-responding normal tissue cells. Int J Radiat Oncol Biol Phys. 2001;49(1):183–9.
Bekerus M, et al. Comparison of HDR and LDR results in endometrium cancer. Sonderb Strahlenther Onkol. 1988;82:222–7.
Fayed A, et al. Comparison of high-dose-rate and low-dose-rate brachytherapy in the treatment of endometrial carcinoma. Int J Radiat Oncol Biol Phys. 2007;67(2):480–4.
Rauthe G, Vahrson H, Giers G. Five-year results and complications in endometrium cancer: HDR afterloading vs. conventional radium therapy. Sonderb Strahlenther Onkol. 1988;82:240–5.
Nag S, et al. The American Brachytherapy Society recommendations for high-dose-rate brachytherapy for carcinoma of the endometrium. Int J Radiat Oncol Biol Phys. 2000;48(3):779–90.
Small Jr W, Erickson B, Kwakwa F. American Brachytherapy Society survey regarding practice patterns of postoperative irradiation for endometrial cancer: current status of vaginal brachytherapy. Int J Radiat Oncol Biol Phys. 2005;63(5):1502–7.
Harkenrider MM. Preliminary Results of the American Brachytherapy Society Survey of Practice Patterns for Vaginal Brachytherapy for Postoperative Endometrial Cancer in ASTRO. 2014. San Francisco, CA.
Demanes DJ, et al. The use and advantages of a multichannel vaginal cylinder in high-dose-rate brachytherapy. Int J Radiat Oncol Biol Phys. 1999;44(1):211–9.
Maruyama Y, Ezzell G, Porter AT. Afterloading high dose rate intracavitary vaginal cylinder. Int J Radiat Oncol Biol Phys. 1994;30(2):473–6.
Park SJ, et al. Dosimetric comparison of 3-dimensional planning techniques using an intravaginal multichannel balloon applicator for high-dose-rate gynecologic brachytherapy. Int J Radiat Oncol Biol Phys. 2013;87(4):840–6.
Tanderup K, Lindegaard JC. Multi-channel intracavitary vaginal brachytherapy using three-dimensional optimization of source geometry. Radiother Oncol. 2004;70(1):81–5.
Gloi AM. First clinical implementation of the Capri applicator. J Appl Clin Med Phys. 2014;15(1):4581.
Corn BW, et al. Impact of improved irradiation technique, age, and lymph node sampling on the severe complication rate of surgically staged endometrial cancer patients: a multivariate analysis. J Clin Oncol. 1994;12(3):510–5.
Algan O, et al. Improved outcome in patients treated with postoperative radiation therapy for pathologic stage I/II endometrial cancer. Int J Radiat Oncol Biol Phys. 1996;35(5):925–33.
Carey MS, et al. Good outcome associated with a standardized treatment protocol using selective postoperative radiation in patients with clinical stage I adenocarcinoma of the endometrium. Gynecol Oncol. 1995;57(2):138–44.
Small Jr W, et al. Consensus guidelines for delineation of clinical target volume for intensity-modulated pelvic radiotherapy in postoperative treatment of endometrial and cervical cancer. Int J Radiat Oncol Biol Phys. 2008;71(2):428–34.
Shih KK, et al. Postoperative pelvic intensity-modulated radiotherapy in high risk endometrial cancer. Gynecol Oncol. 2013;128(3):535–9.
Jhingran A, et al. Vaginal motion and bladder and rectal volumes during pelvic intensity-modulated radiation therapy after hysterectomy. Int J Radiat Oncol Biol Phys. 2012;82(1):256–62.
Heron DE, et al. Conventional 3D conformal versus intensity-modulated radiotherapy for the adjuvant treatment of gynecologic malignancies: a comparative dosimetric study of dose-volume histograms. Gynecol Oncol. 2003;91(1):39–45.
Roeske JC, et al. Intensity-modulated whole pelvic radiation therapy in patients with gynecologic malignancies. Int J Radiat Oncol Biol Phys. 2000;48(5):1613–21.
Jhingran A, et al. A phase II study of intensity modulated radiation therapy to the pelvis for postoperative patients with endometrial carcinoma: radiation therapy oncology group trial 0418. Int J Radiat Oncol Biol Phys. 2012;84(1):e23–8.
Klopp A, et al. The role of postoperative radiation therapy for endometrial cancer: executive summary of an American Society for Radiation Oncology evidence-based guideline. Pract Radiat Oncol. 2014;4(3):137–44.
Meyer LA, et al. Postoperative radiation therapy for endometrial cancer: American Society of Clinical Oncology Clinical Practice Guideline Endorsement of the American Society for Radiation Oncology Evidence-Based Guideline. J Clin Oncol. 2015;33(26):2908–13.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2015 Springer International Publishing Switzerland
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Balogun, O., Lymberis, S., Schiff, P.B. (2015). Early-Stage Endometrial Cancer: Radiation—Less May Be More. In: Muggia, F., Santin, A.D., Oliva, E. (eds) Uterine Cancer. Current Clinical Oncology. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/7631_2015_8
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/7631_2015_8
Publisher Name: Springer, Cham
Print ISBN: 978-3-319-47267-6
Online ISBN: 978-3-319-47269-0
eBook Packages: MedicineMedicine (R0)