Uterine Cancer : Screening, Diagnosis, and Treatment

For the Editors, the task of writing a Preface is most satisfying. It represents the completion of the book and a moment of reflection on whether the whole is more than the sum of all the parts. And also, one must reflect on how this book is likely to be utilized in this era of rapid communications. The Editors first met in May 2003 at a stimulating Italian symposium on endometrial cancer (organizers Drs. Luigi Frigerio, Roberto Grassi and Andrea Lissoni, with participation of the deans of Italian Gynecologic Oncology, Ugo Bianchi and Constantino Mangioni) that took place at Bergamo and Caravaggio. The impressive gains in biology and clinical trials were further discussed by the two editors and others that are co-authors in this venture on this side of the Atlantic at a 2004 Educational Session at the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO). The pace of progress in various aspects of management of uterine cancer was no- worthy, not only was tumor biology fueling novel hypotheses such as questioning the mesenchymal origin of carcinosarcomas, but knowledge of molecular pathways was beginning to be applied as prognostic and as predictive factors portending benefit from systemic therapies. Surgical staging and sensitive imaging provided the underpinning for refining our treatment algorithms. Finally, a role for che- therapy had finally become established, principally through phase III studies c- paring chemotherapy to radiation in mostly locally advanced stages III and IV that had undergone resection.