title: Clinical characteristics and prognostic factors of patients with gastric neuroendocrine carcinoma treated with radical surgery.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Gastric neuroendocrine carcinomas (g-NECs) are rare tumors that have aggressive biological behaviors and poor prognosis, but the prognostic factors of postoperative patients with g-NEC are still unclear. Our aim was to study and explore the clinical characteristics and prognostic factors of patients with g-NEC treated with radical surgery.
  
  
  METHODS
  The clinical data of 43 g-NEC patients who underwent surgery from January 2002 to January 2011 at the Zhongshan Hospital of Fudan University were analyzed. Follow-up was conducted by telephone, mail, or returning visit survey.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The sizes of the 43 neuroendocrine carcinomas (G3) were 1.5 cm × 1.5 cm × 0.5 cm to 7 cm × 8 cm × 1.5 cm. Eight NECs were localized, and 35 had lymph node involvement, of which 1 also had hepatic metastasis. At the end of the follow-up, the follow-up rate was 97.7% (42/43), and the median follow-up time was 22.2 months. The median overall survival of g-NEC patients was 36.5 months, and the 1-, 3-, and 5-year overall survival rates were 86.0%, 51.6%, and 36.7%, respectively. Sex (P < 0.05) and lymph node involvement (P < 0.05) were prognostic factors of postoperative g-NEC patients, among which sex was an independent prognostic factor (P < 0.05), as a survival advantage of female patients over male was observed.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Most of the g-NECs were diagnosed at an advanced stage. The prognosis of g-NECs was related with sex and lymph node involvement, of which sex was an independent prognostic factor, with female patients having a survival advantage.
authors.affiliation: Department of General Surgery, Zhongshan Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai 200032, China.
authors.forename: Xuefeng
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Xu
authors.affiliation: Department of General Surgery, Zhongshan Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai 200032, China.
authors.forename: Jian'ang
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Li
authors.affiliation: Department of General Surgery, Zhongshan Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai 200032, China.
authors.forename: Xu
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Han
authors.affiliation: Department of General Surgery, Zhongshan Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai 200032, China.
authors.forename: Chenye
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Shi
authors.affiliation: Department of General Surgery, Zhongshan Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai 200032, China.
authors.forename: Dayong
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Jin
authors.affiliation: Department of General Surgery, Zhongshan Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai 200032, China. Email: wenhuilou@aliyun.com.
authors.forename: Wenhui
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Lou
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D018278:Carcinoma, Neuroendocrine / Q000601:surgery*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011379:Prognosis; D013274:Stomach Neoplasms / Q000601:surgery*; D016019:Survival Analysis