Bartholin's gland carcinoma: A 15-year experience

Objective. Our objective was to review our experience with carcinoma of Bar tholin's gland relative to treatment and oncologic outcome. Methods. Patient names were collected from our vulvar cancer database for t he period September 1985 to September 2000. The medical records were retros pectively reviewed, and data were abstracted relative to demographics, pres enting symptoms, treatment, and oncologic outcome. Results. We treated 12 women with Bartholin's gland carcinoma, and 11 patie nts are reported. Seven women presented with a painless vulvar mass, and 8 of 11 had initially been treated for an infectious process before referral to our institution. Squamous histology was most common, and the right gland was more frequently involved. Ten patients were treated with primary surge ry, followed by adjuvant radiation in 7 for inadequate resection margins or lymphatic metastases. One patient was treated with primary chemoradiation. Stage I, II, III, IVA, and IVB disease was present in 3, 1, 4, 2, and 1 pa tient, respectively. Recurrence was suffered by 54.5% during a mean follow- up time of 73.5 months (median, 60; range, 8-180 months). Overall survival is 58.3% to date. Conclusions. Conventional therapy for Bartholin's gland carcinoma yielded a 67% 5-year survival. Seventy-one percent of women receiving adjuvant radio therapy recurred despite this precaution. Work is needed to identify an eff ective systemic therapy and to better determine which patients may benefit from pelvic radiotherapy. (C) 2001 Academic Press.