Evolution of characteristics of women with endometrial cancer during a 40 years study period

The aim of our work was to investigate changes in presentation and endometrial cancer (EC) types frequencies thorough a 40 years study period.

The patient group consisted of consecutive women undergoing surgery for endometrial cancer in our institution between 1975, and 2014. Clinical data included age, BMI (Kg/m2), histological data from surgical staging and survival data.

842 patients with the final diagnosis of endometrial cancer were enrolled. BMI was overweight rising through study decades. Age of diagnosis was also in constant augmentation since 1975. Type II EC proportion was 9.2% in the seventies and 27.9% after 2000. Overall survival was stable over time. Women with BMI < 18 kg/m² had lower overall survival when compared to women with other BMI categories (p < 0.0001).

An analysis on a larger population of underweight women with EC is needed to identify specific factors. A trend to develop more type II EC can partly explain these results. We identified a clear trend of augmentation of type II EC, known to have a poor prognosis while necessitating specific surgical management. Histologic analysis standardisation, surgical strategy and amelioration of adjuvant treatments permitted to maintain a stable overall survival for the whole population despite this augmentation.