Risk of vulvar carcinoma in women affected with lichen sclerosus: results of a cohort study

The association between vulvar lichen sclerosus (VLS) and vulvar carcinoma (VC) has long been known [1-4]. However, to date only a few population-based studies have addressed the VC risk in VLS patients. The main objective of this retrospective cohort study was to assess the risk of VC development in a cohort of VLS women in the province of Ferrara, northern Italy (~360,000 inhabitants). All patients enrolled in the study had a first (index) diagnosis of VLS with histopathological ascertainment between 1995 and 2011 and were linked with Ferrara Cancer Registry dataset to identify vulvar invasive cancer incidence (ICD-O 3 topography code C51.0-9, morphology 8010-8576, behavior code /3)