Local therapy in stage I clear cell adenocarcinoma of the vagina

Of the 219 cases of Stage I vaginal clear cell adenocarcinoma reviewed, 176 had conventional therapy and 43 underwent local therapy. The two groups appear to be similar with respect to symptoms, stage, location of the lesion in the vagina, greatest tumor diameter, surface area, depth of invasion, predominant histologic pattern, grade, and number of mitoses; nonetheless, firm conclusions cannot be drawn because of missing data. Actuarial survival rates at 5 and 10 years for the local therapy group (92% and 88%, respectively) were essentially equivalent to those for the conventional therapy group (92% and 90%, respectively), however, the recurrence experience after local therapy was less favorable. Local therapy consisted of vaginectomy in nine cases, local excision alone in 17 cases, and local irradiation (with or without local excision) in 17 cases. The subgroup of patients receiving local irradiation had a recurrence experience as favorable as that of the conventional therapy group and more favorable than that of either the subgroup treated with vaginectomy or local excision alone. The data suggest that when employed, local therapy should include local irradiation.