Gynaecological malignancies in pregnancy: a review

Gynaecological malignancies frequently occur in women of reproductive age and are estimated to complicate approximately one in 1000 pregnancies. The incidence of gynaecological malignancies during pregnancy is expected to rise as more women delay childbearing into their later reproductive years, and maternal age is the most powerful predictor of cancer risk. Pregnancy-associated malignancies present significant challenges as a result of the conflict between optimal maternal therapy and fetal well-being. The lack of prospective randomised treatment studies has prevented the development of clinical guidelines for most of the issues complicating the management. In the present review, recent diagnostic and treatment strategies for cervical, ovarian, vulvar and endometrial carcinomas during pregnancy are presented.