Cancer of the Uterus - Treatment
Contents:
- Treatment types.
- Treatment by stage.
- Follow-up.
All stages of cancer of the uterus can be treated. The treatment depends on the stage of the disease, type of disease and the patient's overall medical condition. Three kinds of treatment may be used either on their own or in combination with others, depending on these
conditions. Treatments include surgery,
radiation
therapy and chemotherapy.
Stage I and II
When the cancer is at this stage, it is usually treated by surgery. This operation involves the removal of the
uterus, fallopian
tubes and ovaries.
Lymph
nodes may also need to be removed. Radiation
therapy may also be used here, depending on the depth of the cancer, the type of
tumour and whether or not the cancer has affected the lymph nodes.
Stage III
Treatment in the early part of this stage involves a combination of surgery and radiation therapy. In the later part, treatment is likely to just involve radiation therapy.
Stage IV
Treatment will involve either surgery or radiation therapy. In this late stage, though,
palliative treatment gives preference to making the patient comfortable and controlling bleeding if it is a problem.
Once treatment is completed, then follow-up commences. The usual follow-up for patients who have been treated for endometrial cancer is as follows:
