title: Is lymph node ratio prognostic factor for survival in elderly patients with node positive breast cancer? The Anatolian Society of Medical Oncology.
abstract: Several studies have now demonstrated that the lymph node ratio (LNR), as a superior indicator of axillary tumor burden to the number of excised nodes. While, about the prognostic value of LNR on the the survival of elderly patients is limited. The aim of this retrospective multicenter study is to evaluate the prognostic value of lymph node ratio in elderly patients with node positive breast cancer.
  
  
  METHODS
  Onehundredeightyfour patient with operable breast cancer, recruited from 17 institutions, were enrolled into the retrospectively study. Eleven potential prognostic variables were chosen for analysis in this study. Univariate and multivariate analyses were conducted to identify prognostic factors associated with survival.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Among the eleven variables of univariate analysis, four variables were identified to have prognostic significance for Overall survival (OS): pathologic tumor size (T), No. of positive nodes (N), LNR and estrogen receptor-positive (ER). Among the eleven variables of univariate analysis, two variables were identified to have prognostic significance for Disease-free survival (DFS): N and LNR. Multivariate analysis by Cox proportional hazard model showed that T, LNR and ER were considered independent prognostic factors for OS. Furthermore, LNR was considered independent prognostic factors for DFS.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  In conclusion, the LNR was associated with the prognostic importance for DFS and OS in elderly patients who were administered adjuvant treatments.
authors.forename: Ali
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Inal
authors.forename: Tulay
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Akman
authors.forename: Sebnem
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Yaman
authors.forename: Selcuk Cemil
authors.initials: SC
authors.lastname: Ozturk
authors.forename: Caglayan
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Geredeli
authors.forename: Mehmet
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Bilici
authors.forename: Mevlude
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Inanc
authors.forename: Hakan
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Harputoglu
authors.forename: Umut
authors.initials: U
authors.lastname: Demirci
authors.forename: Ali
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Suner
authors.forename: Havva Yesil
authors.initials: HY
authors.lastname: Cınkır
authors.forename: Suleyman
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Alıcı
authors.forename: Dilsen
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Colak
authors.forename: Ozlem Uysal
authors.initials: OU
authors.lastname: Sonmez
authors.forename: Gamze
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Goksel
authors.forename: Gamze Gokoz
authors.initials: GG
authors.lastname: Dogu
authors.forename: Huseyin
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Engin
authors.forename: Olcun Umit
authors.initials: OU
authors.lastname: Unal
authors.forename: Tulay
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Tamozlu
authors.forename: Suleyman
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Buyukberber
authors.forename: Cem Melih
authors.initials: CM
authors.lastname: Boruban
authors.forename: Abdurrahman
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Isıkdogan
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D001943:Breast Neoplasms / Q000601:surgery; D006801:Humans; D008197:Lymph Node Excision; D008198:Lymph Nodes; D008207:Lymphatic Metastasis; D008495:Medical Oncology; D009367:Neoplasm Staging; D012189:Retrospective Studies