Causes of Uterine Cancer
Uterine Cancer Causes: Book Excerpts
Medical news summaries relating to Uterine Cancer:
The following medical news items are relevant to causes of Uterine Cancer:
Related information on causes of Uterine Cancer:
As with all medical conditions,
there may be many causal factors.
Further relevant information on causes of Uterine Cancer may be found in:
Causes of Uterine Cancer: Online Medical Books
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for more information about the causes of Uterine Cancer.
Abnormal Uterine Bleeding:
Differential Diagnosis
(In a Page: Signs and Symptoms)
- Endometrial hyperplasia
–Endogenous estrogen excess (e.g., obesity,
tumor)
–Exogenous estrogen
–DUB is a diagnosis of exclusion (usually
not cyclic, occurs irregularly throughout the menstrual cycle)
-
Polycystic ovarian syndrome
-
Hypo- or hyperthyroidism
-
Endometrial atrophy
–Caused by long-term progestin or oral contraceptive use
-
Anatomic or structural lesions
–Uterine leiomyoma (fibroids)
–Foreign body (often intrauterine device)
–Cervical or uterine polyps
-
Pelvic infection (cervicitis, pelvic inflammatory disease)
-
Hypothalamic lesion
-
Hyperprolactinemia
-
Medications (e.g., exogenous estrogen, phenothiazines, reserpine)
-
Coagulation disorders
–Platelet dysfunction: Thrombocytopenia, leukemia, medications (e.g., aspirin, NSAIDs)
–Clotting factor abnormality: Von Willebrand's disease, hemophilia, hepatic or renal disease, anticoagulant use
-
Complications of pregnancy
–Spontaneous abortion (miscarriage)
–Ectopic pregnancy
–Placenta previa
–Placental abruption
-
Endometrial cancer
–Risk factors include older age, chronic anovulation, obesity, hypertension, DM, and unopposed estrogen
-
Systemic disease (e.g., HIV, hepatic disease, renal disease)
-
Nonuterine bleeding
–Vaginal (tear, trauma, or cancer)
–Cervical (trauma or cancer)
–Urinary (UTI or cancer)
–Rectal (bleeding, trauma, fissure, or cancer)
-
Other malignancy (ovarian or uterine tumor, sarcoma)
-
Endometrioma
» READ BOOK EXCERPT ONLINE »
Source: In a Page: Signs and Symptoms, 2004
Introduction: Malignant Neoplasms:
What causes cancer?
(Professional Guide to Diseases (Eighth Edition))
Researchers have found that cancer develops from mutations within the genes of cells. Thus, cancer is a genetic disease. Cancer susceptibility genes are of two types. Some are oncogenes, which activate cell division and influence embryonic development, and some are tumor suppressor genes, which halt cell division.
These genes are typically found in normal human cells, but certain kinds of mutations may transform the normal cells. Inherited defects may cause a genetic mutation, whereas exposure to a carcinogen may cause an acquired mutation. Current evidence indicates that carcinogenesis results from a complex interaction of carcinogens and accumulated mutations in several genes.
In animal studies of the ability of viruses to transform cells, some human viruses exhibit carcinogenic potential. For example, the Epstein-Barr virus, the cause of infectious mononucleosis, has been linked to Burkitt's lymphoma and nasopharyngeal cancer.
High-frequency radiation, such as ultraviolet and ionizing radiation, damages the genetic material known as deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA), possibly inducing genetically transferable abnormalities. Other factors, such as a person's tissue type and hormonal status, interact to potentiate radiation's carcinogenic effect. Examples of substances that may damage DNA and induce carcinogenesis include:
❑alkylating agents — leukemia
❑aromatic hydrocarbons and benzopyrene (from polluted air) — lung cancer
❑asbestos — mesothelioma of the lung
❑tobacco — cancer of the lung, oral cavity and upper airways, esophagus, pancreas, kidneys, and bladder
❑vinyl chloride — angiosarcoma of the liver.
Diet has also been implicated, especially in the development of GI cancer as a result of a high animal fat diet. Additives composed of nitrates and certain methods of food preparation — particularly charbroiling — are also recognized factors.
The role of hormones in carcinogenesis is still controversial, but it seems that excessive use of some hormones, especially estrogen, produces cancer in animals. Also, the synthetic estrogen diethylstilbestrol causes vaginal cancer in some daughters of women who were treated with it. It's unclear, however, whether changes in human hormonal balance retard or stimulate cancer development.
Some forms of cancer and precancerous lesions result from genetic predisposition either directly (as in Wilms' tumor and retinoblastoma) or indirectly (in association with inherited conditions such as Down syndrome or immunodeficiency diseases). Expressed as autosomal recessive, X-linked, or autosomal dominant disorders, their common characteristics include:
❑early onset of malignant disease
❑increased incidence of bilateral cancer in paired organs (breasts, adrenal glands, kidneys, and eighth cranial nerve [acoustic neuroma])
❑increased incidence of multiple primary malignancies in nonpaired organs
❑abnormal chromosome complement in tumor cells.
» READ BOOK EXCERPT ONLINE »
Source: Professional Guide to Diseases (Eighth Edition), 2005
Uterine cancer:
Causes and incidence
(Professional Guide to Diseases (Eighth Edition))
Uterine cancer seems linked to several predisposing factors:
❑abnormal uterine bleeding
❑diabetes
❑familial tendency
❑history of uterine polyps or endometrial hyperplasia
❑hypertension
❑low fertility index and anovulation
❑nulliparity
❑obesity
❑uninterrupted estrogen stimulation.
In most cases, uterine cancer is an adenocarcinoma that metastasizes late, usually from the endometrium to the cervix, ovaries, fallopian tubes, and other peritoneal structures. It may spread to distant organs, such as the lungs and the brain, through the blood or the lymphatic system. Lymph node involvement can also occur. Less common are adenoacanthoma, endometrial stromal sarcoma, lymphosarcoma, mixed mesodermal tumors (including carcinosarcoma), and leiomyosarcoma.
Uterine cancer usually affects postmenopausal women between ages 50 and 60; it's uncommon between ages 30 and 40 and extremely rare before age 30. Most premenopausal women who develop uterine cancer have a history of anovulatory menstrual cycles or other hormonal imbalance. About 37,000 new cases of uterine cancer are reported annually, with approximately 6,400 deaths predicted for 1999.
» READ BOOK EXCERPT ONLINE »
Source: Professional Guide to Diseases (Eighth Edition), 2005
Malignant spinal neoplasms:
Causes and incidence
(Professional Guide to Diseases (Eighth Edition))
Primary tumors of the spinal cord may be extramedullary (occurring outside the spinal cord) or intramedullary (occurring within the cord itself). Extramedullary tumors may be intradural (meningiomas and schwannomas), which account for 60% of all primary malignant spinal cord neoplasms, or extradural (metastatic tumors from breasts, lungs, prostate, leukemia, or lymphomas), which account for 25% of these malignant neoplasms.
Intramedullary tumors, or gliomas (astrocytomas or ependymomas), are comparatively rare, accounting for only about 10%. In children, they're low-grade astrocytomas.
Spinal cord tumors are rare compared with intracranial tumors (ratio of 1:4). They occur equally in men and women, with the exception of meningiomas, which occur mostly in women. Spinal cord tumors can occur anywhere along the length of the cord or its roots.
» READ BOOK EXCERPT ONLINE »
Source: Professional Guide to Diseases (Eighth Edition), 2005
Uterine cancer:
Causes
(Handbook of Diseases)
Uterine cancer seems linked to several predisposing factors:
❑ low fertility index and anovulation
❑ abnormal uterine bleeding
❑ obesity, hypertension, or diabetes
❑ familial tendency
❑ history of atypical endometrial hyperplasia
❑ estrogen therapy (still controversial).
Generally, uterine cancer is an adenocarcinoma that metastasizes late, usually from the endometrium to the cervix, ovaries, fallopian tubes, and other peritoneal structures. It may spread to distant organs, such as the lungs and the brain, through the blood or the lymphatic system. Lymph node involvement can also occur. Less common uterine tumors include adenoacanthoma, endometrial stromal sarcoma, lymphosarcoma, mixed mesodermal tumors (including carcinosar- coma), and leiomyosarcoma.
» READ BOOK EXCERPT ONLINE »
Source: Handbook of Diseases, 2003
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