title: Systematic pelvic and paraaortic lymphadenectomy for advanced ovarian cancer: prognostic significance of node metastases.
abstract: A retrospective study of 488 patients with untreated advanced ovarian cancer is presented. Systematic pelvic and paraaortic lymphadenectomy was performed in 248 cases (50.8%). Selective sampling and node biopsy was performed in 33 (6.7%) and 47 (9.6%) patients, respectively. Node metastases were found in 194 of 328 patients (59.1%). The incidence of metastatic nodes significantly increased with more advanced stages, with serous histology, and with a greater amount of residual tumor. Node status appeared to be related to pathology findings at second-look. A complete pathologic response was documented in 26 of 31 (83.8%) patients with negative nodes and in 38 of 59 (64.6%) with positive nodes at first surgery. Patients with negative nodes survived significantly longer (5-year survival, 46%; median, 60 months) than those who had node metastases (5-year survival, 25%; median, 36 months). Using multivariate analysis, lymph node status, together with the stage of disease and residual tumor, still had a significant impact on 5-year survival. Moreover, among patients with optimal cytoreduction, 5-year survival was 46% (median, 56 months) and 30% (median, 41 months) for patients who did and did not undergo lymphadenectomy, respectively (P = 0.05). Likewise, when suboptimal cytoreduction was considered, a median 5-year survival of 24 months was obtained in patients who underwent lymphadenectomy compared with 14 months in patients who did not (P < 0.005).
authors.affiliation: Department of Gynecologic Oncology, Istituto Nazionale Tumori di Milano, Italy.
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: di Re
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Baiocchi
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Fontanelli
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Grosso
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Cobellis
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Raspagliesi
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: di Re
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001706:Biopsy; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D008197:Lymph Node Excision / Q000592:standards*; D008198:Lymph Nodes / Q000473:pathology*; D008207:Lymphatic Metastasis / Q000473:pathology*; D008875:Middle Aged; D015999:Multivariate Analysis; D010051:Ovarian Neoplasms / Q000145:classification / Q000401:mortality / Q000601:surgery*; D010220:Para-Aortic Bodies; D010388:Pelvis; D011379:Prognosis; D012086:Reoperation; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D015996:Survival Rate