Radiation Oncology Of Gynecological Cancers (medical Radiology)

The treatment of female genital cancers has undergone rapid change in recent years. This book provides a comprehensive description of the current treatment modalities, and while special attention is devoted to the role of radiotherapy, established alternative radical surgical procedures and the newer chemotherapeutic regimens are also considered in some detail. All authors are internationally known experts from Europe, the United States, and Japan, and all have extensive experience in the subjects that they discuss. The incidence, diagnosis, and treatment of gynecologic cancer have undergone major changes during the past 20 years. In addition to significant changes in the incidence of the diseases, there has been extensive application of new technologies in the field. - While the incidence of invasive cancers of the cervix has diminished sharply, there has been a marked increase in the number of patients presenting with in situ carcinomas of the cervix. This has resulted primarily from better education but also from the regular use of Papanicolaou screening for early diagnosis. This trend has been associated with a major shift from late stage disease to early stage disease, which has led to more effective utilization of surgical techniques in primary management, with less emphasis on radiation therapy techniques. Almost invariably, in situ cancers of the cervix can be cured by surgical management, and high cure rates can be achieved by surgical techniques in early invasive cancers of the cervix. Therefore, more patients are receiving definitive surgical management rather than definitive radiation therapy management. - Because of its tendency to present at an early stage, cancer of the endometrium is now more commonly managed by surgical techniques. Postoperative radiation therapy is used when there is persistent residual disease following surgery, a more advanced disease stage than indicated by preliminary study, transection or spillage of tumor during the operative procedure, or positive cytology at the time of the original surgery. Front Matter....Pages I-X The Historical Roots of Modern Brachytherapy for Cervical and Endometrial Cancer....Pages 1-9 Front Matter....Pages 11-11 Radiobiological Considerations in Gynaecological Radiotherapy....Pages 13-23 Diagnostic Workup and Staging....Pages 25-37 Radiation Planning in Female Genital Cancers....Pages 39-66 Front Matter....Pages 67-67 Cancer of the Vulva....Pages 69-97 Special Malignancies of the Vulva....Pages 99-101 Cancer of the Vagina....Pages 103-131 Cancer of the Female Urethra....Pages 133-141 Cancer of the Cervix....Pages 143-239 Cancer of the Endometrium....Pages 241-296 Malignancies of the Ovaries....Pages 297-396 Cancer of the Fallopian Tube....Pages 397-413 Genital Soft Tissue Sarcomas....Pages 415-427 Gestational Trophoblastic Disease....Pages 429-432 Management of Reactions and Complications Following Radiation Therapy....Pages 433-454 Palliative Radiation Therapy in Female Genital Cancers....Pages 455-465 Radiation Treatment of Benign Gynecologic Diseases....Pages 467-471 Back Matter....Pages 473-489 Providing a description of the current treatment modalities of gynaecological cancers, this text considers radiotherapy, established alternative radical surgical procedures and the newer chemotherapeutic regimens.