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Gynecologic Oncology Program

Uterine Sarcoma

Risk Factors

The American Cancer Society estimates that about 38,500 women in the United States will be diagnosed with uterine cancer in 2001. Only about 1-2 percent of these cancers will be uterine sarcomas.

Women who have received therapy with high-dose X-rays (external beam radiation therapy) to their pelvis have an increased risk of develop sarcoma of the uterus later. High-dose X-rays are sometimes given to women to stop bleeding from the uterus.

Other risk factors may include the following:

• Age: Middle-aged and older women are more likely than younger women to develop uterine sarcomas. The disease is most commonly diagnosed after menopause.
  
  
• Race: African American women are more likely than whites or Asian Americans to develop leiomyosarcomas, which are cancers in the muscular wall of the uterus.
  
  
• Hormonal risk factors: Uterine carcinosarcomas develop more frequently in women who have risk factors for endometrial cancer, such as obesity, estrogen replacement therapy, infertility, diabetes, late onset of menstruation or late onset of menopause, or treatment with tamoxifen.

Since there are few risk factors for uterine sarcomas and their cause is not yet well understood, most cases of the disease cannot be prevented.

This page was last updated on: March 5, 2008.

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