Uterine problems discovered after presumed hysterectomy: the Manchester operation revisited.

BACKGROUND

The Manchester operation consists of amputation of the cervix, leading some patients to believe that they have undergone a hysterectomy.

CASES: A 69-year-old woman with vaginal discharge proved to have a well-differentiated adenocarcinoma in the retained uterine corpus. Another 69-year-old woman with a central fluid-filled pelvic mass proved to have a retained blood-filled corpus with an early-stage fallopian tube cancer. The third patient was a 90-year-old woman with symptoms of constipation and urinary frequency, who was found to have a large fluid-filled central mass. At surgery, the retained corpus was distended and filled with mucoid material.

CONCLUSION

Patients who have undergone a Manchester operation may develop disease in the retained uterine corpus, which should be considered in the differential diagnosis of a pelvic mass.