Prevalence of endometriosis in ovarian cancer

Endometriosis may be the precursor of clear cell or endometrioid ovarian ca ncer. In this review, we focus on the prevalence of endometriosis in ovaria n cancer and related clinical and epidemiological issues. According to 15 p ublished reports, the rank order of the prevalence of endometriosis in each histologic type was clear cell (39.2%) > endometrioid (21.2%) > serous (3. 3%) > mucinous type (3.0%). The high prevalence of endometriosis in clear c ell and endometrioid types is a consistent finding in Japan and western cou ntries. However, the incidence of the clear cell type is much higher (15-20 % vs. 7-8%), and that of the endometrioid type is lower (7-16% vs. 18-26%), in Japan compared with western countries. This review is also concerned wi th the relationship between the presence of ovarian endometriosis and clini cal features such as age, parity, menopausal status, clinical stage, and su rvival in ovarian cancer patients. Copyright (C) 2000 S. Karger AG, Basel.