Adenocarcinoma in situ of the endocervix

LTHOUGH OUR KNOWLEDGE of the histogen-A esis of carcinoma is meager, considerable information has recently been gathered on the early stages of carcinoma of the squamous portion of the uterine cervix.If the concept of a histologically recognizable preinvasive form of squamous carcinoma is correct, it would seem likely that other tissues should also exhibit similar stages in the development of cancer.Indeed, there are numerous reports in the literature of carcinoma in situ of such organs as the breast, stomach, bronchus, and skin.It is the purpose of this report to describe a case that appears to be an example of preinvasive adenocarcinoma of the uterine cervix. CASE REPORTSCase 1. T h e patient was a 46year-old, married, gravida 11, para 11, white woman who entered the Out-Patient Clinic of the Free Hospital for Women on February 14, 1952.One week previously she had consulted her private physician because of paresthesia of her upper lip.I n the course of a routine physical examination an "inflamed" cervix was noted, and a biopsy was performed.T h e pathological report on the biopsy specimen was epidermoid carcinoma, and the patient was referred to the Free Hospital for therapy.The history elicited at this time revealed that until two and a half years ago her periods had been regular, twenty-six to thirty days apart, with flow lasting three to four days.Since that time the interval between her periods had varied between three and five months.T h e menstrual flow lasted three to four days but had diminished in amount with each period.During these two and a half years she noted hot flashes, calf pains, paresthesias, and frequent fatigue.In addition to these apparently menopausal symptoms she stated that during