Uterus - Hyperplasia, Malignant tumors of Endometrium, Stroma, and Myometrium & Fallopian Tubes Flashcards
What is endometrial hyperplasia defined as?
- An increase in the number of glands relative to the stroma, appreciated as crowded glands, often with abnormal shapes
What causes endometrial hyperplasia?
- The balance between estrogen and progesterone is disturbed, resulting in absolute or relative increases in the amount of estrogen, with consequent hyperplasia of the endometrial glands
What does endometrial hyperplasia cause?
- Abnormal uterine bleeding
What conditions cause increased estrogen?
- Anovulation
- Obesity
- Menopause
- Prolonged administration of estrogenic substances
- Polycystic ovarian syndrome
- Excessive ovarian cortical funciton
- Functioning ovarian tumors
What is a common genetic alteration seen in endometrial hyperplasia and endometrial cancer?
- Inactivation of PTEN tumor suppressor gene
What is Cowden syndrome?
- Multiple hamartoma syndrome
- Germline PTEN mutation and high incidence of endometrial and breast cancer
What does a loss of PTEN lead to?
- Overactivation of the PI3K/AKT pathway
What does the PI3K/AKT pathway do?
- Up-regulates the activity of glucose transporters and multiple glycolytic enzymes, thus increasing glycolysis
- Promotes shunting of mitochondrial intermediates to pathways leading to lipid biosynthesis
- Stimulates factors that are required for protein synthesis
What are the two major types of endometrial hyperplasia?
- Typical hyperplasia
2. Atypical hyperplasia
What is the cardinal feature of typical hyperplasia?
- Increase in gland to stromal ratio
What are some features of typical hyperplasia?
- Variation in size and shape of glands (dilated)
- Can be back to back glands but usually intervening stroma remains
- Rarely progresses to cancer
What is seen in atypical hyperplasia?
- Complex pattern of proliferating glands displaying nuclear atypia
- Glands are back to back and branching
- Loss of orientation of nuclei to basement membrane
- Nuclear chromatin open
- Conspicuous nuclei
- Overlap with well differentiated cancer
What is the most common invasive cancer of the female genital tract?
- Endometrial cancer
What is the peak age for type 1 endometrial cancer?
- 55-60
What are some clinical features of endometrial cancer?
- No screening test available
- May be asymptomatic for a period, usually produces irregular or postmenopausal bleeding which helps lead to early detection and cures
How is a diagnosis made in endometrial cancer?
- Histologic examination of tissue obtained by biopsy or curettage
- Analyzed for evidence of DNS mismatch repair defects because 3%-5% of women with endometrial cancer have Lynch syndrome and are at high risk for colon cancer
What is the peak age for type 2 endometrial cancer?
- 65-75
What is the clinical setting for type 1 endometrial cancer?
- Unopposed estrogen
- Obesity
- Hypertension
- Diabetes (abnormal GTT in 60%)
- Infertility