The uterus can give rise to different cancers. The most common is a glandular tumor that starts in the endometrium, called endometrial adenocarcinoma. Sometimes a distinction is made between two types of adenocarcinoma. Type I endometrial cancers are associated with excessive estrogen exposure, tend to present with uterine bleeding, and are seen in women with a family history of either colon or uterine cancers. Type II cancers, on the other hand, tend to present without any signs of problems and are of a more aggressive nature.
We will touch on these more in Question 16. Sarcomas can also arise from the uterus: they can arise from the muscle cells, the surrounding stromal cells, or the endometrium itself. The most common sarcomas are leiomyosarcoma, endometrial stromal sarcoma, and carcinosarcoma.
During a normal pregnancy, the uterine placenta feeds the growing baby. However, in rare cases the placenta itself can be cancerous, giving rise to gestational trophoblast neoplasia (GTN). In the first part of the book we will concentrate on uterine adenocarcinoma, but we will also touch on the other tumors of the uterus as well.