Vulvar sarcomas: A 25 plus-year experience from Queensland

Ian S. C. Jones, Alex Crandon, Karen Sanday

Queensland Centre for Gynaecological Cancer, University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia.
Queensland Centre for Gynaecological Cancer, University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia&Women’s and Newborn Services, Royal Brisbane and Women’s Hospital, Herston, Australia.

DOI: 10.4236/ojog.2013.31009                

Abstract

Objective: To review the characteristics of cases of vulvar sarcomas (VS) referred to the Queensland Centre for Gynaecological Cancer (QCGC) between mid 1984 and mid 2012. Methods: VS case data from QCGC were reviewed and analysed using the computer software Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) 11.0. Results: Of the nine cases three died of their disease, one died of ovarian cancer and five are still alive and disease free. The mean age at diagnosis was 54.8 years. Time from onset of symptoms to diagnosis averaged one month. All diagnoses were confirmed histologically. The most common presenting complaint was a lump. Treatment in all but one case involved surgical excision, one case had chemotherapy alone and two cases had surgery followed by radiotherapy. Conclusions: To talk of five year survival for patients with such a rare cancer, so many histological types with variable cell differentiation plus the unknown of when sarcomatous cells metastasize from even early FIGO staged lesions is in our opinion taking generalisation to far. A multidisciplinary approach to management achieves the best results for each individual and pooling multicentre data will improve our understanding of this rare disease and benefit future patients.

Keywords

Vulvar Sarcoma; Diagnosis; Management; Outcome; Follow Up

Conflicts of Interest

The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

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