Sarcomas of the uterine cervix: a united and multidisciplinary approach is required

The most common histological subtype of cervical cancer is squamous cell carcinoma, which is followed by adenocarcinoma, adenosquamous and small-cell/neuroendocrine carcinoma. The mesenchymal tumors of the uterine cervix are distinctly uncommon and heterogenous diseases. Cervical sarcomas are rare tumors that constitute less than 1% of all cervical malignancies. Although substantial progress has been achieved in the diagnosis and treatment of uterine sarcomas, cervical sarcomas are still not characterized well and standardized concepts for their management are lacking due to their rarity and histopathological diversity. Apart from case reports, only a few retrospective studies of sarcomas of the uterine cervix have been published to date [1–5] and these are difficult to compare because some of them also include carcinosarcoma, which is considered to be a type of metaplastic carcinoma rather than a sarcoma. However, a large-scale prospective investigation of cervical sarcomas is difficult due to its low incidence and complicated histological subtypes.

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