The uterus or womb is a hollow bag like structure found in the pelvis of each woman. The fetus will grow and reside in the uterus till birth. The shape of the uterus resembles a pear fruit kept upside down. If the cells in the uterus grow and multiply abnormally it causes uterine cancer. Uterus cancer can develop on any woman but there are certain risk factors like obesity, old age, taking estrogen therapy, abnormal growth of endometrial tissue and family history that can increase the chance of getting uterine cancer.
There would be abnormal vaginal bleeding and pain while having sex if a woman has uterine cancer. It can be treated by surgery or chemotherapy or radiation therapy depending on the stage of cancer. Uterus has 3 parts namely top portion from where the fallopian tubes starts developing, the middle portion where the baby grows and the bottom portion that connects to the vagina. The wall of the uterus has an inner lining called endometrium which is normally thin and grows thick when the women becomes pregnant and an outer layer called myometrium or the muscle tissue.
Uterine cancer is also called as endometrial cancer begins in the fundamental unit of the cells of uterus. If there is some mistake in the cell formation that can lead to overlapping of cells building up a mass tumor it can cause uterine cancer. Not all the tumors in the uterus are cancerous; some can be benign and harmless. For instance polyp or a fibroid is also a tumor but they are not cancerous.
Malignant tumors are one that causes threat and invade other tissues and organs gradually. The cancer causing cells would eventually break down from the tumor travelling to the lymph nodes and other organs of the body. This process is called as metastasizing in which cancerous cells would attack to the new tissues of organ thus invading and destroying them.