Gynecologic Cancer Diagnosis

What is ovarian cancer?

Ovarian cancer begins in the ovaries and is the fifth most common cancer among women. While the cause of ovarian cancer is unknown, women ages 55 and older are generally at a higher risk of developing ovarian cancer.

What is primary peritoneal cancer ?

Primary peritoneal cancer is a relatively rare cancer that begins in a layer of tissue inside of the abdomen called the peritoneum. The peritoneum lines the abdomen, covering the uterus, bladder, and rectum. While primary peritoneal cancer often acts similar to ovarian cancer and is typically treated the same way, these types of cancers are distinctly different. Primary peritoneal cancer is more common in women, but can occur in men, too.

What is fallopian tube cancer?

Fallopian tube cancer is one of the rarest forms of gynecologic cancer. Secondary fallopian tube cancer, which is when a cancer starts in another part of the body and spreads to the fallopian tubes, is much more common. The two main types of fallopian tube cancer start in the lining of the fallopian tubes.

What is endometrial or uterine cancer?

Uterine sarcoma is a rare cancer of the uterus (womb). It is not the same as endometrial cancer, a much more common cancer that starts in the lining of the uterus. Uterine sarcoma most often starts in the muscle underneath that lining.

Endometrial cancer is cancer that starts in the endometrium, the lining of the uterus (womb). Endometrial cancer is the most common type of uterine cancer.

What is cervical cancer?

Cervical cancer is cancer that starts in the cervix. The cervix is the lower part of the uterus (womb) that opens at the top of the vagina. Cervical cancer is the third most common type of cancer in women, but is much less common in the United States because of routine Pap smears.

What is vaginal cancer?

Most vaginal cancers occur when another cancer, such as cervical or endometrial cancer, spreads. This is called secondary vaginal cancer.

Cancer that starts in the vagina is called primary vaginal cancer. This type of cancer is much more rare. Most primary vaginal cancers start in skin-like cells called squamous cells. Other types of squamous cell cancers include adenocarcinoma, melanoma and sarcoma.

What is vulvar cancer?

Vulvar cancer is a rare cancer that starts in the vulva. Vulvar cancer most often affects the labia, the folds of skin outside the vagina. In some cases, vulvar cancer starts on the clitoris or in glands on the sides of the vaginal opening.

Most vulvar cancers begin in skin cells called squamous cells.

What is GTD/choriocarcinoma?

Gestational trophoblastic disease (GTD) refers to a group of rare tumors that occur inside a woman's uterus. Unlike endometrial or uterine cancer, GTD does not develop from cells of the uterus. These tumors start in the cells that would normally make up the placenta during pregnancy.

Choriocarcinoma is a malignant and fast-growing type of gestational trophoblastic disease that almost always occurs as an abnormal pregnancy or after a pregnancy. This form of GTD is much more likely spread to organs away from the uterus.