Hysteroscopy-Guided Endometrial Sampling Diagnostic Performance in Endometrial Intraepithelial Neoplasia Patients.

OBJECTIVE

To compare the diagnostic performance of hysteroscopy-guided versus blind sampling in detecting concurrent endometrial carcinoma in patients with endometrial intraepithelial neoplasia (EIN) and to identify factors associated with missing cancer diagnosis.

DESIGN

This is a retrospective cohort study.

SETTING

Integrated academic and community healthcare system in Minnesota and Wisconsin, USA, January 1, 2018, and January 1, 2023.

PARTICIPANTS

This included 151 patients diagnosed with EIN during endometrial sampling who underwent a hysterectomy within 3 months. Patients with concurrent cancer diagnoses were excluded.

INTERVENTIONS

Patients diagnosed with EIN using hysteroscopy-directed biopsy were compared to those diagnosed with blind-sampling methods using the pathology results of the subsequent hysterectomy specimen as the gold standard comparator to analyze rates of missed endometrial cancer (EC) diagnosis.

MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS

The primary outcome was a reduced risk of unanticipated concurrent EC on the final hysterectomy pathology result for patients diagnosed with endometrial intraepithelial hyperplasia via a hysteroscopy-directed biopsy (odds ratios [OR] = 0.44, 95% confidence intervals [CI] = 0.20-0.95, p = .033). In multivariate analysis, body mass index ≥30 and patient age >60 were associated with an elevated risk of EC on final pathology (OR = 4.17, 95% CI = 1.51-11.51, p = .004; OR = 5.56, 95% CI = 1.22-35.21, p < .001), respectively, and diabetes mellitus was the only independent variable associated with a higher risk of EIN on final hysterectomy pathology (OR = 7.01, 95% CI = 1.40-35.04, p = .018). Age, body mass index, and endometrial thickness on pre-biopsy ultrasound were not associated with an increased risk of overlooking concurrent endometrial carcinoma on final hysterectomy pathology on univariate and multivariate analyses.

CONCLUSION

Hysteroscopy-directed biopsy may reduce the risk of missing a concurrent endometrial malignancy during endometrial sampling in women with EIN. The results affirm the superior diagnostic accuracy of hysteroscopy-directed endometrial evaluation.