[Actual aspects of endometrial carcinoma]

The endometrial carcinoma is meanwhile the most common malignant tumor of the female genital tract. 2 subtypes can be divided according the pathogenesis: the classical estrogen related endometroid type and the nonclassical estrogen unrelated serous type. The endometrial adenomatous hyperplasia as a precancerous lesion must be identified by subjective criteria. Therefore the histological diagnosis is worse reproducible. An improvement would be helpful by morphometric and molecular genetic methods. The golden standard of diagnosis of the endometrial carcinoma is fractional dilatation and curettage. Immunohistochemical staining with a limited panel of antibodies can discriminate between an endometrial and an endocervical origin of an adenocarcinoma. The corner stone of the therapy is surgery. An individual decision about postoperative treatment is very important and depends on histological criteria. The adjuvant postoperative whole pelvic radiation is under discussion whereas the vaginal brachytherapy is established as standard therapy. This article outlines an overview of the actual situation for pathogenesis, diagnosis and treatment endometrial cancer.