
1987 Study Abstract
We reviewed 519 cases of clear-cell adenocarcinoma of the vagina and cervix identified by the Registry for Research on Hormonal Transplacental Carcinogenesis of the University of Chicago through June 30, 1985. In 60 percent of all cases the patient’s mother had received diethylstilbestrol during pregnancy. An additional 12 percent of all mothers had been treated with another hormone or with an unidentified medication. Ninety-one percent of the cases in diethylstilbestrol-exposed women were diagnosed when the patient was between the ages of 15 and 27. The median age at diagnosis was 19.0 years. The risk that clear-cell adenocarcinoma will develop in an exposed female from birth through age 34 is 1 case per 1000 women. The temporal pattern of occurrence of clear-cell adenocarcinoma corresponds closely with that of the use of diethylstilbestrol for pregnancy support in the United States. The rarity of this tumor among exposed women suggests that diethylstilbestrol is not a complete carcinogen and that some other factor is also involved in the pathogenesis of clear-cell adenocarcinoma of the vagina and cervix.
Sources and more information
- Rates and risks of diethylstilbestrol-related clear-cell adenocarcinoma of the vagina and cervix. An update., Melnick S, Cole P, Anderson D, Herbst A., N Engl J Med. 1987 Feb 26;316(9):514-6, NCBI Pubmed PMID: 3807995.
More DES DiEthylStilbestrol Resources
- DES studies on cancers and screening.
- DES studies on epigenetics and transgenerational effects.
- DES studies on fertility and pregnancy.
- DES studies on gender identity and psychological health.
- DES studies on in-utero exposure to DES and side-effects.
- DES studies on the genital tract.
- Papers on DES lawsuits.
- DES videos and posts tagged DES, the DES-exposed, DES victims.
This doesn’t go away! I give talks on DES to groups. It’s astounding how few people know about this and how many think Thalidomide was the only drug that caused such drastic damage. This is not a promotion plug but I have written a fiction built on fact novel about this drug,.. which was approved by DES Action.
indeed Judith, thank you