Survival Rates and Prognosis Factors of Endometrial Cancer Stage I

Abstract

Background: Since the introduction of the new FIGO classification for endometrial cancer, there have been few studies evaluating the prognosis of endometrial cancer on the basis of this new classification. Materials and Methods: For a total of 514 patients with endometrial cancer stage I who had been treated from January 1, 1980 to December 31, 1991 and followed up until January 7,1993, a reclassification on the basis of the new FIGO system was undertaken and a multivariate analysis carried out to identify prognosis factors on the basis of the Cox Proportional Hazard Model. Results: The 5-year survival rate at FIGO stage la is 92.4%, at FIGO stage lb 96.7%, and at FIGO stage Ic 88.2%. According to the FIGO classification, 14.6% belonged to stage la, 44.6% to stage lb, and 40.8% to stage Ic. In spite of the large number of investigated cases, the FIGO subclassification Ia––Ic showed in a multivariate analysis no statistical difference between stage la and lb concerning prognosis. On the other hand, grading (odds ratio 3.3), type of therapy (odds ratio 2.2), and age at diagnosis proved to be highly significant prognosis factors. Conclusions: The evaluation of 514 endometrial cancers shows that the subclassification at FIGO stage I using the Cox Proportional Hazard Model cannot be identified as a significant prognosis factor except stage Ic. The study shows that despite of the large number of documented cases, the prognostic differences between stages la and lb are too small to be distinguished by using the Cox Proportional Hazard Model.