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Case Reports
. 2022 Aug 26;10(24):8782-8787.
doi: 10.12998/wjcc.v10.i24.8782.

Endometrial squamous cell carcinoma originating from the cervix: A case report

Xin-Yu Shu  1 , Zhang Dai  1 , Shuang Zhang  2 , Hui-Xia Yang  1 , Hui Bi  3
Affiliations
Case Reports

Endometrial squamous cell carcinoma originating from the cervix: A case report

Xin-Yu Shu et al. World J Clin Cases. .

Abstract

Background: Cervical squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) is the most common type of cervical carcinoma and is generally derived from a precancerous stage called cervical high-grade squamous intraepithelial lesion (HSIL). Usually, the cancer metastasizes through lymphatic or hematogenous dissemination, but rarely spreads upward into the uterus. Here, we report a case of cervical HSIL extending into the endometrium and finally progressing to SCC in the uterine cavity.

Case summary: A 57-year-old postmenopausal woman visited our department and requested a routine cervical check-up. Four years ago, she had undergone a cervical loop electrosurgical excision procedure because of HSIL found during the gynecological examination, and she had not been checked again since. This time, a relapse of the cervical HSIL was diagnosed along with uterine pyometra and endometrial polyps. After 2 wk of antibiotic treatment, a laparoscopic hysterectomy was performed, and the final pathological examination revealed that the cervical HSIL had spread directly upward into the uterine cavity, gradually developing into cervical SCC in the endometrium.

Conclusion: Cervical HSIL/SCC can directly spread upward into the uterus with the most common symptoms of pyometra and cervical stenosis. More attention should be given to the early detection and prevention of this disease.

Keywords: Case report; Cervical carcinoma; Cervical stenosis; Endometrial squamous cell carcinoma; Pyometra; Superficial spreading.

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Conflict of interest statement

Conflict-of-interest statement: All the authors declare that they have no conflicts of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Magnetic resonance imaging of the uterine cavity. A and B: T2 sequencing (A) and enhanced sequencing (B) of the uterus, both showing fluid within the uterine cavity (orange arrow) and the cervical canal (blue arrow), which was most likely pyometra; C: A mass that protruded into the uterine cavity (arrow), which is most likely an endometrial polyp or submucosal myoma.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Microscopic appearance of the disease. A and B: Hematoxylin–eosin staining of the cervix (A) and endometrium (B). While it was a high-grade squamous intraepithelial lesion in the cervix (blue arrow), the lesion penetrated into the endometrium and the myometrium, forming squamous cell carcinoma in the uterine cavity (orange arrow); C-F: Immunohistochemical staining of the uterus. Both the cervix (C) and endometrium (D) showed strong expression of p16 (arrow), p63 was also highly expressed in the endometrium (E), whereas expression of estrogen receptor was negative in the endometrium, and normal endometrial glands (arrow) could also be seen (F).
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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