Pattern of gynaecological malignancies at the University of Ilorin Teaching Hospital, Ilorin, Nigeria.

Gynaecological malignancies contribute to the global burden of diseases and are of public health interest. The objective of this study was to determine the pattern of distribution of gynaecological malignancies seen between 1 January 2002 and 31 December 2006, at the University of Ilorin Teaching Hospital, Ilorin, Nigeria. It was a retrospective descriptive study. A total of 166 cases of gynaecological malignancies were encountered, cervical cancer was the most common (59.6%). This was followed by ovarian cancer (21.1%), trophoblastic tumour (7.8%) and corpus uteri cancer (6.0%). Others included cancer of the vulva (3.6%) and cancer of the vagina (1.8%). Squamous cell carcinoma accounted for 96.0% of cervical cancers. Epithelial tumours represented 60.0% of ovarian cancers, and serous cyst adenocarcinoma was the most common histological variety. All the vulval and vaginal cancers were of squamous cell type. In conclusion, genital malignancies are common and cervical cancer remains the leading gynaecological malignancy in this centre.