Vaginal cancer differential diagnosis

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Editor-In-Chief: C. Michael Gibson, M.S., M.D. [1]

Overview

Vaginal cancer must be differentiated from cervical carcinoma, rectal carcinoma, uterine carcinoma, vaginal lymphoma, vaginal cyst, vaginal node of endometriosis, and uterine fibroids.

Differential diagnosis

For large lesions consider invasion of the vagina by:

• Cervical carcinoma
• Rectal carcinoma
• Uterine carcinoma

Malignant involvement of the vagina from metastatic spread is much more common, and except for isolated reports of metastases from extragenital cancers, the most common cause of metastatic disease is direct local invasion from the female urogenital tract. Therefore some authors state the diagnosis of primary vaginal carcinoma should be diagnosed only if other gynecologic malignancies have been excluded.

Other differential considerations include:

• Vaginal lymphoma

Diseases with similar symptoms (bleeding or vaginal discharge) are the following:

• Vaginal cyst
• Vaginal node of endometriosis
• Uterine fibroids

	Clinical Features	Physical Examination	Diagnostic Findings
Cervical Carcinoma	Dysmenorrhea Dyspareunia Infertility Common in women between 25 to 35 years	Nodules in the posterior fornix Adnexal masses Fixed retroverted uterus Lateral displacement of the cervix	Increased serum cancer antigen-125  Nodules of the recto vaginal septum and hypoechoic, vascular mass on MRI Laproscopic visualization confirms the diagnosis
Rectal Carcinoma	Abnormal uterine bleeding Dysmenorrhea Common in women aged 40 and 50 years	Diffuse uterine enlargement always less than size corresponding to less than 12 weeks of gestation	Asymmetric thickening of the myometrium on MRI
Submucous uterine leiomyomas	Menorrhagia Pelvic pressure and pain Infertility Peak age of onset 25 to 44 years of age	Mobile uterus with an irregular contour	Transvaginal ultrasound will demonstrate the presence of myomas
Uterine Carcinoma	Dysmenorrhea Dyspareunia Bleeding Common in women between 55 to 65 years	Nodules in the posterior fornix Adnexal masses Fixed retroverted uterus Lateral displacement of the cervix	Increased serum cancer antigen-125  Nodules of the recto vaginal septum and hypoechoic, vascular mass on MRI Laproscopic visualization confirms the diagnosis
Vaginal Lymphoma	Dysmenorrhea Dyspareunia Bleeding Common in women between 55 to 65 years	Nodules in the posterior fornix Adnexal masses Fixed retroverted uterus Lateral displacement of the cervix	Increased serum cancer antigen-125  Nodules of the recto vaginal septum and hypoechoic, vascular mass on MRI Laproscopic visualization confirms the diagnosis
Endometriosis	Dysmenorrhea Dyspareunia Bleeding Common in women between 55 to 65 years	Nodules in the posterior fornix Adnexal masses Fixed retroverted uterus Lateral displacement of the cervix	Increased serum cancer antigen-125  Nodules of the recto vaginal septum and hypoechoic, vascular mass on MRI Laproscopic visualization confirms the diagnosis
Adenomyosis	Dysmenorrhea Dyspareunia Bleeding Common in women between 55 to 65 years	Nodules in the posterior fornix Adnexal masses Fixed retroverted uterus Lateral displacement of the cervix	Increased serum cancer antigen-125  Nodules of the recto vaginal septum and hypoechoic, vascular mass on MRI Laproscopic visualization confirms the diagnosis