[A case of vaginal adenocarcinoma after uterine exposure to diethylstilbestrol].

From 1946 to 1971, diethylstilbestrol, a nonsteroid synthetic estrogen, came in for widespread use in the USA, and in other countries only occasional use, for the treatment of high-risk pregnancies. In 1971 a retrospective epidemiologic study showed a close association of this therapy with occurrence of vaginal and cervical adenocarcinoma in young women (mean age 19 years). Up to 1981 63% of 429 clear cell carcinomas of the vagina and cervix were related to DES exposure in utero in the USA. Following reports on a few cases in other countries, the present report is the first in a Swiss female, aged 23, with stage III DES-induced adenocarcinoma of the vagina. The risk of DES-related adenocarcinoma is estimated at about 1%, but benign teratogenic lesions are present in over 50% of patients. Vaginal adenosis is the most frequent finding, but other malformations of vagina (septa), cervix, uterus and fallopian tube may be found. Malformations of the genital tract have also been described in DES-exposed male offspring.