Histopathological characterization in carcinoma of the endometrium. Comparison between biopsy and pathological examination of specimen.

On the basis of a case series of 577 patients affected by carcinoma of the endometrium treated during the period 1963-1989 in the Gynecologic Institute of the Padua University, the present work examines the reliability of endometrial biopsy aiming at the correct histopathologic diagnosis, through comparison with the subsequent histologic examination of the surgical specimen. It is shown how simple biopsy alone allows for correct diagnosis of histotype in 91.6% of cases of adenocarcinoma, while the reliability of such an examination is reduced, respectively, to 30.7% in adenoacanthoma and to 37.5% in adenosquamous histotypes.