Nonsquamous Malignancies of Vagina and Vulva: 23-Year Experience at a Tertiary Center in the United Kingdom

Abstract

Under 10% of gynaecological cancers are diagnosed in the vulva and vagina, mostly squamous cell carcinomas. Melanoma, Paget disease, basal cell carcinomas, and other cancers can present with vulval/vaginal symptoms. The pathology information system of a tertiary referral center for vulvo-vaginal cancers was searched for cancers of the vulva and vagina from 1996 to 2019. Squamous carcinomas were excluded, and the remaining entities were catalogued. A total of 221 nonsquamous cancers were found, including 135 vaginal and 86 vulval cases. One hundred eight cases of metastatic carcinomas from the endometrium, cervix, ovary, bowel, bladder, kidney, and breast formed the largest category. Basal cell carcinomas constituted the second largest category. Others included melanomas, Paget disease, and adenoid cystic carcinomas. Primary adenocarcinomas included porocarcinoma, mammary type carcinoma, enteric type carcinoma, clear cell carcinoma, Bartholin gland adenocarcinoma and malignant transformation of hidradenoma papilliferum. The vulva and vagina can harbor a wide range of nonsquamous malignancies. The most challenging of these are adenocarcinomas which can be metastatic from other sites. The dominance of metastatic carcinomas in this series is likely to reflect consultation practice of specialist pathologists.