Contents
Risk factors and prevention of endometrial cancer (body of the uterus)
Risk factors
- obesity. This is a major risk factor, as fatty adipose tissue makes estrogen, which stimulates the growth of the uterine lining (the endometrium);
- Hormone replacement therapy with estrogen alone. Hormone therapy with estrogen alone, therefore without progesterone, is clearly associated with an increased risk of endometrial cancer or hyperplasia. It is therefore only recommended for women who have had the uterus removed.2 ;
- A diet too high in fat. By contributing to excess weight and obesity, and possibly by acting directly on the metabolism of estrogen, the fats in the diet, consumed in excess, increase the risk of endometrial cancer;
- Tamoxifen treatment. Women taking or having taken tamoxifen to prevent or treat breast cancer are at greater risk. One in 500 women treated with tamoxifen develop endometrial cancer1. This risk is generally considered to be low compared to the benefits it brings.
- Lack of physical activity.
Prevention
Screening measures |
It is important to react quickly to a abnormal vaginal bleeding, especially in a postmenopausal woman. You must then consult your doctor quickly. Also, it is important to consult a doctor regularly and have a regular gynecological examination, during which the doctor examines the vagina, uterus, ovaries and bladder. Warning. A pap smear, commonly called a Pap test (Pap smear), cannot detect the presence of cancer cells inside the uterus. It is only used to screen for cancers of the pass uterus (entrance to the uterus) and not those of the endometrium (inside the uterus). The Canadian Cancer Society recommends that women with an above-average risk of endometrial cancer evaluate with their doctor the possibility of establishing a personalized follow-up. |
Basic preventive measures |
However, women can reduce the risk of developing endometrial cancer by the following measures. Note that many women with risk factors will never have endometrial cancer Maintain a healthy weight Obesity is one of the main risk factors for endometrial cancer in postmenopausal women. Swedish researchers analyzed epidemiological data from European Union countries and discovered that 39% of endometrial cancers in these countries are linked to excess weight3. Regularly engage in physical activities. Women who exercise regularly are less at risk. Several studies indicate that this habit reduces the risk of endometrial cancer. Take a appropriate hormone therapy after menopause. For women who choose to start hormone therapy during menopause, this treatment should contain a progestin. And this is still the case today. Indeed, when hormone therapy contained only estrogen, it increased the risk of endometrial cancer. Estrogens alone are still sometimes prescribed, but reserved for women who have had the uterus removed (hysterectomy). They are therefore no longer at risk of endometrial cancer. Exceptionally, some women may need hormone therapy without progestin due to side effects caused by the progestin2. In this case, the medical authorities recommend that an endometrial evaluation be done every year by a doctor, as a preventive measure. Adopt as much as possible an anticancer diet. Based primarily on the results of epidemiological studies, animal studies and studies in vitro, researchers and doctors have issued recommendations to encourage the consumption of foods that help the body prevent cancer4-7 . It is also believed that remission from cancer could be promoted, but this remains a hypothesis. See the sheet Tailor-made diet: cancer, designed by nutritionist Hélène Baribeau. Remark. Taking estrogen-progestogen contraceptives (birth control pill, ring, patch) for several years reduces the risk of endometrial cancer. |