Conservative management of uterine adenosarcoma: lessons learned from 20 years of follow-up

PURPOSE: Uterine adenosarcomas (UAs) account for 5–8% of cases of uterine sarcomas. Treatment includes total abdominal hysterectomy (TAH) and bilateral salpingo-oophorectomy (BSO). Fertility preservation is an emerging concept in gynaecology oncology and is particularly relevant in UA, where cases are diagnosed as young as 15-year-old. This manuscript demonstrates a case of UA which was treated conservatively, achieved successful livebirths and underwent completion hysterectomy after two decades of follow-up. METHOD: This was a retrospective case note review. RESULTS: An 18-year-old nulliparous woman presented with abnormal vaginal bleeding. Ultrasound identified an endometrial polyp, which was histologically diagnosed as low-grade adenosarcoma. She was advised to undergo TAH and BSO, but instead decided to preserve her fertility and opted for conservative management. She was monitored with pelvic ultrasound, hysteroscopy and endometrial biopsy bi-annually, with annual pelvic magnetic resonance imaging for 10 years which was uneventful. 11 years post-operatively she conceived following in-vitro fertilization (IVF) but suffered a miscarriage at 16 weeks likely due to cervical incompetence. She subsequently conceived with twins. She delivered spontaneously preterm at 28 weeks. Both children are alive and well. After 20 years of follow-up, she underwent a laparoscopic hysterectomy with no evidence of recurrence. She remains disease free. CONCLUSION: Whilst radical completion surgery should be advised in UA, this case, in addition to all published conservatively managed cases of UA, demonstrates that conservative management is possible in appropriately selected women. Intensive monitoring post-operatively is essential owing to the risk of recurrence; however, this may pose deleterious side effects which require consideration.