Uterine Cancer - Are You at Risk?
What is uterine cancer?
Uterine cancer starts in the membrane of the cells in the uterus. It usually develops in women between the ages of 50-70 after their menopause.
It is of two types of uterus cancer. The first one concerns the premenopausal women and the other occurs in old females following menopause.
Symptoms
Women suffering from uterine cancer have some common symptoms such as:
· Pain or difficulty in passing urine,
· Abnormal discharge or bleeding from vagina,
· Extreme pain during sexual intercourse,
· A pelvic lump,
· Unusual loss in weight,
· Pain in the pelvic region and
· Having never breast-fed
Causes
Uterine cancer can develop due to number of reasons which includes:
· Diabetes,
· Obesity,
· Polycystic ovaries having prolonged ovulation,
· Lack of menstruation,
· Extensive use of tamoxifen for the treatment of breast cancers and
· Taking only estrogen without progestin
Diagnosis
It is diagnosed by taking endometrial and endocervical samples. Sometimes vaginal ultrasound is also done to explore the disease and changes in uterus. Pap smear test is another accurate method to detect the cancer of uterus but it is not very reliable.
Risk Factors
The major risk factor of developing uterine cancer is due to prolonged exposure to estrogen. Increase in estrogen level can increase the risk too. Listed below are the things which can add to woman's exposure to estrogen:
· Early menstruation - before 12 years of age
· Late menopause - after 52 years of age
· Never having children
· History of no ovulation
· Tamoxifen - a drug to treat and reduce breast cancer risk
· Estrogen replacement therapy-to treat symptoms of menopause
· Race - white women are at higher risk than African women
· Colon Cancer - women who had inherited colon cancer are more likely to develop uterine cancer.
· X-rays - women exposed to radiation of pelvis are at higher risk
Treatment
Treatment depends on stage and grade of the disease. The standard mode of treatment is the removal of uterus, ovaries and fallopian tubes by surgery. Some doctors prefer hormone therapy to reduce the risk.
The treatment of uterine cancer is possible if it is treated immediately and without delay.
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