Laparoscopy-assisted surgery: Effective for endometrial cancer?

A new study published in March 2007 in the American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology reported that laparascopy-assisted vaginal hysterectomy (LAVM) is a safe and effective treatment for stage I endometrial cancer in women with a BMI (Body mass index) of less than 35.

In this study, laparoscopic hysterectomy was compared to abdominal hysterectomy, and it gave further evidence from previous studies on the safety and effectiveness of LAVM in early stage endometrial cancer.

Although LAVM took longer to perform than abdominal hysterectomy, the study shows that it is associated with reduced blood loss and shorter hospital stay. The recurrence rate, overall and disease free survival are also slightly lower with the LAVM method but did not show a statistical difference in the study.

This is a great option to explore with your doctor if you are considering surgery.

External Radiation Therapy No Benefit in Early Endometrial Cancer

A recent clinical study reported in the American Society of Clinical Oncology meeting has found that external radiation therapy done right after surgery do not show any benefit to patients in extending sutvival or reducing risk of recurrence.

This study, done on women with stage I endometrial cancer involves 906 women who are seperated into 2 study group. They were followed up for everage of 4 years and those who recieved external radiation therapy after surgery do not show any difference in overall or recurrence free survival rate.

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