Almost a quarter of a century has elapsed since Cellular Biology of the Uterus, the predecessor
of the present volume, was planned. During that period, especially in the decade since the
publication of the last edition of Biology of the Uterus, new information in the field has been so
voluminous as to require major revisions of most of the chapters, the addition of several new
chapters, and the collaboration of a second editor to facilitate the selection of appropriate
experts as authors. As in prior editions, a balance has been struck between classical biology
and modem biochemistry and biophysics. The inclusion of basic histological and embryological
information provides a necessary, though often lacking, background for the protein
chemist and molecular biologist and a bridge between the cell biologist and clinician. Thus,
major practical problems in human reproduction, such as the genesis of endometrial carcinoma
and the cause of the initiation of labor, may be approached on a firm scientific footing.