ANGIOGENESIS AS A PROGNOSTIC FACTOR IN CERVICAL-CARCINOMA

Angiogenesis and other prognostic factors have been studied among 32 r ecurrences and 28 deaths of 420 patients with cervical carcinoma opera ted in the ist Department of Obstetrics & Gynecology of Catania Univer sity. Prognostic factors were studied in comparison with a group of pa tients still alive and NED was followed for more than 60 months indepe ndently of stage and node involvement. Angiogenesis, nuclear grading 3 , and lymphovascular invasion were factors common to all patients with negative prognosis. It seems that in the presence of these negative p rognostic factors, we should adopt a more aggressive attitude in both our surgical strategies and adjuvant therapies, particularly preferrin g chemotherapy where angiogenesis is more significant.