Intramuscular metastatic squamous cell carcinoma of the cervix: autopsy case report

Ano: 2012 | Volume: 2 | Número: 4

Autores: C. R. Ferreira, L. A. Testagrossa, F. P. F. Campos, M. Y. Kanegae, N. P. C. Lorenzi, R. S. Simões

Palavras-chave: neoplasms squamous cell, cervix uteri, neoplasm metastasis, muscle skeletal.

Resumo Inglês:

Cancer of the uterine cervix is the fourth leading cause of death in women in
Brazil, accounting for 4800 fatal cases per year. The histology of this neoplasia is
mainly represented by squamous cell carcinoma (80-85%), adenocarcinomas
(10-15%), and, more rarely, mixed carcinomas. The Papanicolaou (Pap) smear
test is the method of excellence in detecting incipient or pre-malignant lesions.
Since its implementation, the Pap test has been reducing the incidence of
this neoplasia worldwide, despite its lack of high sensitivity and specificity.
Both incidence and mortality from cervical cancer have sharply decreased
following the introduction of well-run screening programs. The cervical cancer
typically spreads to adjacent structures by contiguity; pelvic and para-aortic
lymph nodes are involved by lymphatic dissemination. Less frequently,
hematogenic spread is observed, and when it occurs, the brain, breast, and
skeletal muscle are rarely involved. The authors report a case of a young
woman who underwent periodical gynecological examination with negative
Pap tests and presented to the hospital with an advanced cervical metastatic
disease involving thyroid, muscles, lymph nodes, and breast (among others
sites). The diagnosis of the primary site was not elucidated during life. The
patient died, and at autopsy an endophytic squamous cell carcinoma of the
cervix was diagnosed.