Is it safe to reserve uterus after live-birth following
fertility-sparing treatment of endometrial cancer and atypical
hyperplasia : a long-term retrospective cohort study
Abstract
Objective To assess the safety of continuous uterus-preserving
in endometrial cancer (EC) and atypical endometrial hyperplasia (AEH)
patients who gave birth after fertility-sparing treatment (FST).
Design A retrospective study conducted between January 2005 and
June 2020. Setting Peking University People’s Hospital, China.
Population A total of 212 EC/AEH patients undergoing FST.
Methods Patients were stratified as patients with a live-birth
(n=73) outcome and those without (n=139). Main Outcomes
Measures Risk factors for disease recurrence were analyzed for all
patients undergoing FST and postpartum recurrence was analyzed for those
with live-birth after FST. Results Live-birth significantly
reduced the risk of disease recurrence (HR 0.326, P=0.011), while
insulin resistance is an adverse factor (HR 3.216, P=0.014).
Exceprt for two patients who underwent hysterectomy, for the 71 patients
with uterus-preserving after live-birth, five (7%) patients occurred
disease relapse (one EC and four AEH), after a median follow-up of 26
(11, 47.5) months. While there were another eight patients (11.3%)
experiencing hyperplasia without atypical (EH). Risk factors for
postparturm EC/AEH/EH included irregular menstrual period (75% vs.
36.8%, P=0.028), abnormal echo of ultrasound (53.8% vs. 13.7%,
P=0.005) and a thicker endometrium (0.76cm vs. 0.53cm, P=0.003) .
While maintenance treatment after birth (38.5% vs. 62.5%, P=0.129)
tended to have a protective effect. Conclusions Alough
live-birth for EC/AEH patients who underwent FST has benefit on
recurrence-free survival, there still exists a postpartum risk of
disease recurrence, with irrregular menstruation, thicker endometrium
and abnormal ultrasound as risk factors.