A case of glassy cell carcinoma of the uterine cervix that responded to neoadjuvant chemotherapy with paclitaxel and carboplatin

Glassy cell carcinoma of the uterine cervix is a rare tumor, and has a poor prognosis because of its aggressive clinical behavior and resistance to radiotherapy and chemotherapy. We report a case of bulky glassy cell carcinoma of the uterine cervix that effectively responded to paclitaxel and carboplatin in a neoadjuvant setting. The patient was a 30-year-old woman who became aware of vaginal bleeding and was referred to our hospital because of a cancerous tumor of the uterine cervix. Physical examination showed the cervical tumor to be approximately 8cm in diameter with no involvement of the parametrium or vagina. The biopsy results suggested a diagnosis of glassy cell carcinoma. The final diagnosis was glassy cell carcinoma of the uterine cervix, stage 1b2. Neoadjuvant chemotherapy with paclitaxel and carboplatin was administered for downstaging. The response rate was 67.9% (partial response) under magnetic resonance imaging, and elevated serum cancer-related antigen 125 (119 U/ml) and squamous cancer cell antigen (34 ng/ml) were reduced to 34 U/ml and 3.3 ng/ml, respectively. Following neoadjuvant chemotherapy, she underwent radical hysterectomy and adjuvant chemotherapy with the same regimen. The clinical course was very good. We speculate that glassy cell carcinoma is a sensitive tumor to paclitaxel and carboplatin. Further evaluation concerning diagnosis and treatment, however, is needed to improve the prognosis of patients with glassy cell carcinoma.