Outcome of uterine clear cell carcinomas compared to endometrioid carcinomas and poorly-differentiated endometrioid carcinomas

OBJECTIVES: Our aim was to compare the survival between patients with clear cell carcinoma (CC) and patients with endometrioid carcinoma (EC).

METHODS: Through the population-based Geneva Cancer Registry, we identified 1,380 resident women diagnosed with uterine cancer between 1970 and 2000. We excluded those with papillary serous endometrial carcinoma and uterine sarcomas. We categorized patients as CC (n = 32, 2.8%) or EC (n = 1,145, 97.2%). Uterine cancer-specific survival rates were calculated by Kaplan-Meier analysis. We used Cox proportional hazards analysis to compare uterine cancer mortality risks between groups, and adjusted these risks for other prognostic factors.

RESULTS: CC patients presented with a more advanced stage at diagnosis than EC patients (p = 0.002). Compared to women with EC, women with CC had a significantly greater risk of dying from their disease (hazard ratio [HR] 2.9, 95% confidence interval (95% CI) 1.7-4.9). After adjustment for age, stage and adjuvant chemotherapy, the risk of dying from uterine cancer was still significantly higher for CC patients (HR 2.0, 95% CI 1.2-3.4). By univariate analysis, the risk of dying of endometrial cancer was not significantly higher in CC patients than in patients with poorly-differentiated EC (HR 1.3, 95% CI 0.7-2.3).

CONCLUSION: This population-based investigation shows that patients with CC have a poorer outcome than those with EC. Studies to determine the role of adjuvant treatment in CC patients are needed.