title: Is pelvic lymph node dissection necessary in patients with a serum PSA<10ng/ml undergoing radical prostatectomy for prostate cancer?
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Controversy persists concerning the role of pelvic lymph node dissection (PLND) in patients with preoperative PSA values <10ng/ml undergoing treatment for prostate cancer with a curative intent. The aim of this study was to determine the incidence of lymph node metastasis in this subgroup of patients.
  
  
  METHODS
  Patients with clinically localized prostate cancer and a serum PSA<10ng/ml, without neoadjuvant hormonal or radiotherapy, with negative staging examinations who underwent radical retropubic prostatectomy with bilateral extended PLND and with >/=10 lymph nodes detected by the pathologist in the surgical specimen, were included in the study.
  
  
  RESULTS
  A total of 231 patients with a median serum PSA of 6.7ng/ml (range 0.4-9.98) and a median age of 62 years (range 44-76) were evaluated. A median of 20 (range 10-72) nodes were removed per patient. Positive nodes were found in 26 of 231 patients (11%), the majority of which (81%) had a Gleason score >/=7 in the surgical specimen. Of the patients with a Gleason score >/=7 in the prostatectomy specimen 25% had positive nodes, whereas only 3% with a Gleason score </=6 were node positive.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The incidence of positive nodes in patients with clinically localized prostate cancer, a serum PSA<10ng/ml and a Gleason score >/=7 in the prostatectomy specimen was 25% after extended PLND. It seems that in this patient group extended PLND, including removal of nodes along the internal iliac vessels, is warranted.
authors.affiliation: Department of Urology, University of Bern, Switzerland.
authors.forename: Martin C
authors.initials: MC
authors.lastname: Schumacher
authors.forename: Fiona C
authors.initials: FC
authors.lastname: Burkhard
authors.forename: George N
authors.initials: GN
authors.lastname: Thalmann
authors.forename: Achim
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Fleischmann
authors.forename: Urs E
authors.initials: UE
authors.lastname: Studer
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D006801:Humans; D008197:Lymph Node Excision / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D008207:Lymphatic Metastasis; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010388:Pelvis; D017430:Prostate-Specific Antigen / Q000097:blood*; D011468:Prostatectomy / Q000379:methods*; D011471:Prostatic Neoplasms / Q000097:blood / Q000473:pathology* / Q000601:surgery*
chemical_list: D017430:Prostate-Specific Antigen