Uterine Cancer: Promising New Therapy Uses IUD to Avoid Surgery

The IUD--a contraceptive device that sits on the cervix as a sort of bouncer for the uterus to keep sperm from meeting up with wonton ovaries--has been adapted by a Spanish oncologist to treat a form of cancer of the uterus, avoiding the need for a hysterectomy. The innovative concept has met with early success: After a full year on the new therapy, eight of the 14 women with endometrial cancer (EC) and all but one of the 20 with atypical endometrial hyperplasia (AEH)--a precursor of EC--were cancer-free. Of these 27 women, nine have gone on to bear children.

Lucas Minig, now at the Madrid Sanchinarro University Hospital in Spain, used a hormone-releasing intrauterine device (IUD) to treat women with endometrial cancer and its precursor. The IUD releases a synthetic form of progesterone, thought to cause cell death at high doses. "By acting directly on the tumour, it avoids painful side effects," Minig told New Scientist. The women also received monthly injections of GnRH, a hormone which halts the production of estrogen, thought to stimulate tumour growth.