VULVA CANCER

Course overview

VULVAR CANCER REPRESENTS 0.3% OF ALL NEW CANCER CASES IN THE UNITED STATES. SQUAMOUS CELL CARCINOMA IS THE MOST COMMON TYPE AND IS USUALLY DIAGNOSED AT AGES 65 TO 74. RISK FACTORS INCLUDE INCREASING AGE, HPV INFECTION, SMOKING, INFLAMMATORY CONDITIONS OF THE VULVA, PRIOR PELVIC RADIATION, AND IMMUNODEFICIENCY. IT USUALLY PRESENTS AS AN ERYTHEMATOUS LESION OR AN ILL-DEFINED MASS. DIAGNOSIS IS USUALLY MADE VIA TISSUE BIOPSY, WITH SURGICAL EXCISION BEING THE MAINSTAY OF TREATMENT. ADJUVANT CHEMO AND RADIOTHERAPY CAN ALSO BE CONSIDERED DEPENDING ON THE STAGE OF THE DISEASE. THIS ACTIVITY REVIEWS THE EVALUATION AND MANAGEMENT OF VULVAR CANCER AND HIGHLIGHTS THE HEALTHCARE TEAM'S ROLE IN EVALUATING AND TREATING PATIENTS WITH VULVAR CANCER.