Pattern of gynaecological malignancies in a Nigerian tertiary hospital

Abstract

The sociodemographic and histological patterns of gynaecological malignancies is important in their management. Facilities are now available for prevention, detection, treatment and palliative care for the wide spectrum of female genital tract malignancies. The study aim to determine the socio demographic and histological patterns of Gynaecological malignancies identified at the University of Abuja Teaching Hospital (UATH). This was a retrospective study carried out in the Obstetrics and Gynaecology department of the University of Abuja Teaching Hospital (UATH), Abuja, Nigeria between 1st January, 2012 and 31st December, 2016. The case notes of patients admitted for Gynaecological malignancy were retrieved from the medical records and studied for relative frequency, age distribution, parity and histological types of the Gynaecological malignancies. Out of 3786 women admitted during the study period, 113 had Gynaecological malignancies, giving an incidence of 3.0%. Majority of the women had cervical cancer (65.5%) followed by ovarian cancer (22.1%). Endometrial cancer, Choriocarcinoma, and vulva cancer accounted for 7.1, 4.4 and 0.9%, respectively. Squamous cell carcinoma accounted for 93.2% of cervical cancers. Epithelial tumours accounted for 84% of ovarian tumours, while adenocarcinoma accounted for 61.5% of cancers of the corpus uteri. The mean age for the various female genital cancers were: cervical cancer (52.6 ± 0.88 years), ovarian cancer (40.9± 1.68 years), vulva cancer (34.5 ± 0 years), choriocarcinoma (30.5 ± 1.44 years), and endometrial cancer (54.5 ± 1.77 years). Cervical cancer remains the most common female genital tract malignancy seen. The challenges with cervical cancer screening need to be addressed to reduce its incidence. Key words: Gynaecological cancers, pattern, frequency, histology.