PRIMARY OBJECTIVES:~I. Determine the diagnostic sensitivity and specificity of preoperative fludeoxyglucose F 18 positron emission tomography (FDG-PET)/CT scanning and ferumoxtran-10 MRI scanning in identifying metastases to abdominal (common iliac, para-aortic, and paracaval) lymph nodes in patients with locoregionally advanced cervical carcinoma.~II. Determine the diagnostic sensitivity and specificity of preoperative FDG-PET/CT scanning and ferumoxtran-10 MRI scanning in identifying metastases to retroperitoneal abdominal lymph nodes in patients with high-risk endometrial cancer.~SECONDARY OBJECTIVES:~I. Determine the diagnostic sensitivity and specificity of preoperative FDG-PET/CT scanning and ferumoxtran-10 MRI scanning in identifying metastases to pelvic lymph nodes and pelvic and abdominal lymph nodes combined in patients with locoregionally advanced cervical carcinoma or high-risk endometrial cancer.~II. Compare the additive diagnostic value of CT fusion (PET/CT scan) vs PET scanning alone in identifying metastases to pelvic, abdominal, and combined (all regions) lymph nodes in these patients.~III. Compare the diagnostic sensitivity and specificity of PET/CT scanning vs ferumoxtran-10 MRI scanning in identifying metastases to pelvic, abdominal, and combined lymph nodes in these patients.~IV. Compare the diagnostic sensitivity and specificity of ferumoxtran-10 MRI vs MRI alone, in terms of size criteria in the abdomen and pelvis, in these patients.~V. Determine the percentage of patients with locoregionally advanced cervical cancer or high-risk endometrial cancer who have biopsy-proven disease outside the abdominal or pelvic lymph nodes detected by PET/CT scanning.~VI. Determine the accuracy of MRI in determining the depth of myometrial invasion and involvement of cervix in patients with high-risk endometrial cancer.~VII. Determine the complications associated with extraperitoneal or laparoscopic abdominal and pelvic lymphadenectomy in patients with locoregionally advanced cervical cancer.~VIII. Determine the cause(s) of delay in the initiation of radiotherapy or interruption in radiotherapy in patients with locoregionally advanced cervical cancer.~IX. Collect data on the adverse effects of ferumoxtran-10 in patients with locoregionally advanced cervical carcinoma or high-risk endometrial cancer.~X. Compare the size of lymph nodes in pre- and post-ferumoxtran-10 MRI's in a subset of forty patients.~OUTLINE: This is a multicenter study.~Patients receive fludeoxyglucose F 18 (FDG) IV followed 60 minutes later by positron emission tomography (PET)/CT scanning on day 1. Patients also receive ferumoxtran-10 IV over 30-45 minutes on day 1 (or 24-36 hours before MRI) and undergo MRI on day 2. Patients undergo extraperitoneal, laparoscopic, or trans-peritoneal lymphadenectomy with pelvic and abdominal lymph node biopsy within 2 weeks after PET/CT scan. Patients diagnosed with metastatic disease prior to lymph node biopsy proceed directly to primary treatment. Patients with cervical cancer undergo chemoradiotherapy within 4 weeks of PET/CT scan.~After completion of study therapy, patients are followed at 6 weeks, 6 months, every 3 months for 2 years, and then every 6 months for 3 years.
This phase I/II trial is studying how well fludeoxyglucose F 18 PET scan, CT scan, and ferumoxtran-10 MRI scan finds lymph node metastasis before undergoing chemotherapy and radiation therapy in patients with locally advanced cervical cancer or high-risk endometrial cancer. Diagnostic procedures, such as a fludeoxyglucose F 18 positron emission tomography (PET) scan, computed tomography (CT) scan, and ferumoxtran-10 magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scan, may help find lymph node metastasis in patients with cervical cancer or endometrial cancer.