title: Prognostic Value of Focal Positive Surgical Margins After Radical Prostatectomy.
abstract: The significance of focal positive margins (FPMs) after radical prostatectomy (RP) is unclear. Our objective was to investigate the prognostic value of FPMs in patients undergoing RP.
  
  
  
  The data were analyzed retrospectively for 1733 patients with clinically localized prostate cancer who had undergone RP at our institution from December 2003 to March 2014 without neoadjuvant or adjuvant therapy. Positive surgical margins were characterized as FPMs (≤ 3 mm long) or non-FPMs (> 3 mm long). Multivariate analysis of the clinicopathologic factors, including FPMs, was performed with respect to biochemical recurrence (BCR)-free survival.
  
  
  
  Of the 1733 patients, 1260 (72.7%) had negative margins, 114 (6.6%) had a FPM, 218 (12.6%) had a nonfocal single positive margin (NFSPM), and 141 (8.1%) had nonfocal multiple positive margins (NFMPMs). Of the patients with pathologic T2 prostate cancer, 1065 (84.3%) had negative margins, 62 (4.9%) had 1 FPM, 104 (8.2%) had 1 NFSPM, and 33 (2.6%) had NFMPMs. The 5-year BCR-free survival for patients with negative margins and FPMs was 90% and 83.4%, respectively. On multivariate analysis, the presence of a FPM was not a significant prognostic factor for BCR-free survival in all the patients or in the patients with pathologic T2 disease (P = .458 and P = .512, respectively).
  
  
  
  FPMs after RP do not significantly affect BCR-free survival in patients with prostate cancer.
authors.affiliation: Department of Urology, Seoul National University Bundang Hospital, Seongnam, Korea.
authors.forename: Sangchul
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.affiliation: Department of Urology, Seoul National University Bundang Hospital, Seongnam, Korea.
authors.forename: Ki Bom
authors.initials: KB
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.affiliation: Department of Urology, Hanyang University Hospital, Seoul, Korea. Electronic address: victorjo38@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Jung Ki
authors.initials: JK
authors.lastname: Jo
authors.affiliation: Department of Urology, Seoul National University Bundang Hospital, Seongnam, Korea.
authors.forename: Jin-Nyoung
authors.initials: JN
authors.lastname: Ho
authors.affiliation: Department of Urology, Seoul National University Bundang Hospital, Seongnam, Korea.
authors.forename: Jong Jin
authors.initials: JJ
authors.lastname: Oh
authors.affiliation: Department of Urology, Seoul National University Bundang Hospital, Seongnam, Korea.
authors.forename: Seong Jin
authors.initials: SJ
authors.lastname: Jeong
authors.affiliation: Department of Urology, Seoul National University Bundang Hospital, Seongnam, Korea.
authors.forename: Sung Kyu
authors.initials: SK
authors.lastname: Hong
authors.affiliation: Department of Urology, Seoul National University Bundang Hospital, Seongnam, Korea.
authors.forename: Seok-Soo
authors.initials: SS
authors.lastname: Byun
authors.affiliation: Department of Pathology, Seoul National University Bundang Hospital, Seongnam, Korea.
authors.forename: Gheeyoung
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Choe
authors.affiliation: Department of Urology, Seoul National University Bundang Hospital, Seongnam, Korea.
authors.forename: Sang Eun
authors.initials: SE
authors.lastname: Lee
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D018572:Disease-Free Survival; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D000072662:Margins of Excision; D008875:Middle Aged; D011379:Prognosis; D011467:Prostate / Q000473:pathology*; D011468:Prostatectomy / Q000379:methods*; D011471:Prostatic Neoplasms / Q000401:mortality / Q000473:pathology / Q000601:surgery*; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D016019:Survival Analysis
keywords: Biochemical recurrence; Focal; Positive margin; Prognosis; Prostate