Abstract

PIP: This article presents a discussion of factors related to the low incidence of carcinoma of the cervical stump among the Jewish population of Israel; the most important factor is the low rate of hysterectomies which are performed, and in particular, the low rate of subtotal hysterectectomies. A review of Central Cancer Registry statistics demonstrates that in Israel between 1966 and 1971 there were only 291 Jewish patients diagnosed as having cervical cancer; 8 of these women, or 2.7%, had carcinoma of the cervical stump. At the time of diagnosis these 8 women ranged in age from 49 to 61 years; gravidity ranged from 0 to 7 previous pregnancies; each woman had undergone a subtotal hysterectomy at some point in the past, ranging from 5 to 30 years earlier. In all cases, treatment for the carcinoma was by radiation; 4 of the patients died within 3 years of diagnosis. The authors present evidence for the theory that exposure to hysterectomy in general within a population will increase the incidence of carcinoma of the cervical stump; the rate of this cancer compared to all cases of cervical cancer is particularly low among immigrants from South Africa and Asia, areas in which there is relatively less exposure to hysterectomy.