Malignant Tumours of the Vulva. A Study of the Effects of Radiotherapy, Surgery and Cho-Emotherapy in Combination or Used Alone

摘要

The thesis analyses 317 patients with vulvar malignancies treated at the University Hospital, Lund, during 1960-1979. The three most common histological types of malignancy have been analysed. The oncological clinic in Lund has since the 1960's used a surgical technique where the primary tumour and the regional lymph nodes are operated on in two separate surgical seances. The vulvectomy is performed with tarm knife technique, and the wound is left open. The 5-year crude survival rate for the entire patient material treated with curative intention was over 60 %, which agrees well with reports from other centres. Our surgical approach using two separate seances has, however, much lower rates of postoperative complications and mortality than the rates in other reports. The overall most important prognostic factors for the patients with invasive vulvar malignancies are the presence of lymphatic metastases at the time of surgery, and the surgical radicality of the primary surgery. The treatment at most stages of tumour development and most histological types should include total vulvectomy preoperative irradiation of the inguinal lymph nodes, and inguinal lymphadenectomy. Only local extirpation and hemivulvectomy are, however, indicated for small microinvasively growing squamous cell carcinoma and basal cell carcinoma. Samll invasive onesided squamous cell carcinoma is best treated with ipsilateral surgery combined with preoperative irradiation of the inguinal lymph nodes. Patients with metastases in the inguinal lymph nodes should receive additional irradiation of the inguinal and pelvic lymph node stations. (Atomindex citation 14:783650)