Occult neoplastic cells in the lymph node sinuses and recurrence of primary breast, lung, esophageal, and gastric cancer

The correlation between detection of occult neo-plastic cells (ONCs) in lymph node sinuses and the recurrence/metastasis of primary breast, lung, esophageal, and gastric cancer was examined. Among patients with Stage I-III cancer treated by radical resection with dissection of at least 10 lymph nodes, 40 patients who suffered recurrence/metastasis within 5 years post-operatively and 94 patients who did not have recurrence within 5 years were randomly selected. A total of 1,340 lymph nodes were subjected to immunohistochemical staining for cytokeratin to identify ONCs. Then the sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value, and negative predictive value of ONCs were determined for predicting the recurrence of each cancer. These parameters were respectively 40.0, 75.9, 62.4, and 55.8% for breast cancer, while the respective values were 50.0, 77.4, 68.9, and 60.8% for lung, 57.1, 64.3, 61.5, and 60.0% for esophageal, and 68.8, 65.0, 66.3, and 67.5% for gastric cancer. All of the parameters exceeded 65% for gastric cancer. ONCs also showed a high specificity for breast and lung cancer, but both the sensitivity and specificity were low for esophageal cancer.     

Criteria for predicting the recurrence and metastasis of stage I and II gastric cancer without lymph node metastasis

This study examined whether detection of occult neoplastic cells (ONCs) in lymph nodes or the high-risk criteria for recurrence/metastasis of colorectal cancer were useful for predicting the recurrence of primary gastric cancer. The subjects were 122 patients with node-negative stage I or stage II primary gastric cancer. Prediction of recurrence using ONCs showed a sensitivity of 25.0% (2/8), specificity of 97.1% (100/103), and accuracy of 61.1% in stage I patients, while the respective values were 75.0% (3/4), 100.0% (7/7), and 87.5% in stage II patients. Prediction of recurrence in patients who fulfilled 2 or more of the high-risk criteria showed a sensitivity of 37.5% (3/8), specificity of 94.2% (97/103), and accuracy of 65.9% for stage I patients, while the respective values were 100.0% (4/4), 85.7% (6/7), and 92.9% for stage II patients. These results suggest that the prediction of recurrence based on the high-risk criteria shows a high sensitivity, specificity, and accuracy in patients of stage II gastric cancer without lymph node metastasis.     

Selection criteria for high risk and low risk groups of recurrence and metastasis in patients with primary colorectal cancer

Among 371 patients with primary colorectal cancer, 54 patients suffered from recurrence/metastasis (recurrence group) and 317 survived without recurrence for at least 5 years (non-recurrence group). The clinicopathological characteristics of the 2 groups were compared and occult neoplastic cells (ONCs) in the lymph node sinuses were detected by cytokeratin immunohistochemistry. There were significant differences of the following factors: venous invasion (v-) vs. (v+) for Dukes' A patients (p=0.0315); harvested lymph nodes (LN) or=15 for Dukes' B patients (p=0.0388); (v-) vs. (v+) (p=0.0059), lymphatic invasion (ly-) vs. (ly+) (p=0.0435) for Dukes' A and B patients combined; D>n vs. D=n (p=0.0033), depth of tumor invasion or=se/a2 (p=0.0329) for Dukes' C patients. When the detection of >or=3 ONCs was defined as positive, the sensitivity, specificity, PPV, and NPV were respectively 77%, 100%, 100% and 71% in Dukes' B patients, as well as 75%, 72%, 73% and 74% in Dukes' C patients. The high-risk groups for recurrence/metastasis were identified by the following criteria: (v+) and (ly+), or=se/a2, and ONCs (+) of those with >or=2 factors for Dukes' C patients (selection rate; approximately 21.2-37.5%). These factors seem to be appropriate for separating patients into high-risk and low-risk groups of colorectal cancer recurrence/metastasis.     

p53 expression,growth, and spontaneous metastasis of the human GI 101 breast carcinoma in athymic nude mice

The human GI 101 breast carcinoma cell lines produces spontaneous metastasis to the lungs when xenografted subcutaneously in female athymic nude mice. To establish the time-course of tumor growth and distant metastasis to the lungs and axillary lymph nodes, 5 mm3 of tumor tissue was implanted in the subaxial region of female athymic nude mice. Micrometastases in the lung were first detected 3 weeks after tumor implantation. The incidence of lung metastasis and the number of tumor emboli were correlated with the volume of the primary tumors. Ipsilateral axillary lymph node metastasis was observed within 17 weeks, indicating that metastasis to the lymph node is a later event. Unlike pulmonary micrometastases which were in the form of clusters of four to six tumor cells, metastasis to the lymph nodes were in nodules of poorly differentiated and larger tumor cells. Immunohistochemistry evaluation of p53 oncoprotein in the primary and metastatic tumor cells showed different patterns of subcellular accumulation. Cytoplasmic staining was mainly detected in the primary and secondary tumor cells disseminated to the lungs. In contrast, nuclear staining was only detected in tumor cells infiltrated to the axillary lymph nodes. There was no gain of loss of positivity of p53 accumulation (i.e., qualitative measurements) as the tumor grew in size. The data indicate that the GI 101 tumor cells could be used as a useful model for studying the malignant progression of hormone-independent breast cancer, antimetastatic drugs, and early events in tumor metastasis.     

人脾原发性恶性淋巴瘤裸小鼠原位移植模型的建立及生物学特性的研究

目的 建立人脾原发性恶性淋巴瘤裸小鼠原位移植模型,为探讨其发病机理和实验治疗提供工具,方法 将11例人脾原发性恶性淋巴瘤新鲜组织植入裸鼠脾裨内,观察原位移植的成瘤、移植瘤的侵袭和转移及其形态学特征（光镜、电镜、免疫组织化学）。结果 筛选出1株人脾原发性（非霍奇金B细胞性裂核细胞型）恶性淋巴瘤裸鼠原位移植模型（BFNHL－HMN－1）,已传至41代;1株人脾原发性（非霍奇金B细胞性裂核细胞型）恶性淋巴瘤裸鼠原位移植肝转移模型（LM－BFNHL－HMN－2）,已传至47代;1株2脾原发性（非霍奇金T免疫母细胞）恶性淋巴瘤裸鼠原位移植模型（TINHL－HMN－3）,已传至37代,共移植裸鼠611只,其肿瘤移植生长率、肝转移率和液氮冻存复苏成活率均为100％。BFNHL－HMN－1和TINHL－HMN－3肿瘤完全限于脾内,呈结节状生长,或伴有脾门淋巴结累及,无腹腔淋巴结和器官转移。LM－BFNHL－HMN－2肿瘤不仅限于脾脏,并有脾门淋巴结及肝转移。原位移植瘤组织经病理学、超微结构观察,流式细胞仪DNA含量测定及染色体核型的分析,表明与人脾原发性恶性淋巴瘤细胞相一致。结论 所建立的3株人脾原发性恶性淋巴瘤裸鼠原位移植模型,完整地模拟了人脾原发性恶性淋巴瘤患者的临床过程,为研究人脾原发性淋巴瘤的生物学和实验治疗提供了理想的动物模型。     

Accuracy of criteria for predicting recurrence and metastasis in stage II and III gastric cancer patients with lymph node metastasis

This study assessed the prediction of gastric cancer recurrence based on detection of occult neoplastic cells (ONCs) in lymph nodes, and by using criteria that were developed to identify patients with a high risk of recurrence/metastasis. The subjects were 60 patients of stage II or III gastric cancer with lymph node metastasis. Prediction of recurrence based on the detection of ONCs showed a sensitivity of 33.3% (2/6), specificity of 70.0% (7/10), and accuracy of 51.7% in stage II patients, while the sensitivity was 73.5% (25/34), specificity was 100.0% (10/10), and accuracy was 86.8% in stage III patients. Prediction of recurrence based on the presence of at least 2 high-risk criteria had a sensitivity of 33.3% (2/6), specificity of 100.0% (10/10), and accuracy of 66.7% in stage II patients, while the sensitivity was 82.4% (28/34), specificity was 80.0% (8/10), and accuracy was 81.2% in stage III patients. These results suggest that prediction of recurrence/metastasis soon after surgery using ONCs plus the high-risk criteria can increase the specificity in stage II cancer, and can achieve a sensitivity of 80% or more with a high specificity and accuracy in stage III cancer.     

Predicting the recurrence/metastasis of stage I and II breast cancer without lymph node metastasis

Prediction of the recurrence of primary breast cancer was attempted by detection of occult neoplastic cells (ONCs) in lymph nodes or by using the high-risk criteria for recurrence/metastasis of gastric and colorectal cancer. The subjects were 70 patients with stage I or II node-negative primary breast cancer. Prediction of recurrence using ONCs had a sensitivity of 60.0% (3/5) and a false-negative rate of 40.0% (2/5) in the recurrence group, while the specificity was 96.9% (63/65) and the false-positive rate was 3.1% (2/65) in the non-recurrence group. The accuracy of ONCs was 78.5%. Prediction of recurrence based on positivity for at least 2 of the high-risk criteria showed a sensitivity of 60.0% (3/5) and a false-negative rate of 40.0% (2/5) in the recurrence group, while the specificity was 95.4% (62/65) and the false-positive rate was 4.6% (3/65) in the non-recurrence group. The accuracy of the high-risk criteria was 77.7%. These results suggest that ONCs show the same accuracy as the high-risk criteria for predicting recurrence/metastasis of stage I and II node-negative breast cancer with a high specificity.     

Cytokeratin 20 and guanylyl cyclase C mRNA is largely present in lymph node and liver specimens of colorectal cancer patients

The aim of our prospective study was to detect circulating epithelial cells (CEC) indicating the presence of disseminated tumor cells (DTC) in tissues affected by lymphatic and hematogenic colorectal cancer metastasis. DTC were tracked in lymph node, liver or bone marrow samples of 245 colorectal cancer patients using 2 independent RT-PCR assays for cytokeratin 20 (CK20) and guanylylcyclase C (GCC) that demonstrated a sensitivity of 1 colorectal cancer cell in 10(6) nucleated hematopoietic cells. CK20 mRNA was detected in 79% of lymph nodes, 35% of both liver lobes and 11% of bone marrow samples. GCC mRNA was found in 68% of lymph nodes, 60% of both liver lobes and 6% of bone marrow specimens. Both markers were recorded in 63% of lymph nodes, 45% of at least 1 liver lobe and 1% of bone marrow samples. There was no significant difference when comparing lymph node samples tested positive for both markers in patients with (N1/2; 65%) and without (N0; 56%) nodal involvement. The same was true when comparing the percentages of patients with and without clinically overt distant metastasis who were positive for both markers in at least 1 liver lobe (62% vs. 41%) or in bone marrow (4% vs. 0%). A score denoting the cumulative sum of tests indicating presence of CK20 and GCC mRNA in the liver was significantly related with UICC classification (p = 0.039). However, addition of lymph node results to this score decreased the correlation. The high incidence of clinically inconspicuous lymph node and liver samples tested positive for both markers emphasizes the function of these organs as primary filters for epithelial cells possibly shed from colorectal carcinomas. The potential prognostic significance of these findings warrants verification, especially regarding the importance of CEC or DTC resident in the liver of colorectal cancer patients.     

Clinical usefulness of serum and immunohistochemical markers in patients with stage Ia and Ic ovarian cancer

We compared the preoperative serum tumor marker values and diameters of ovarian tumors between 14 stage Ia ovarian cancer patients with a good prognosis and 14 stage Ic patients with a poor prognosis. The aim was to examine the usability of tumor markers and diameter of ovarian tumors for prognostic diagnosis of clinically advanced phases. In occult neoplastic cells (ONCs), a tumor marker indicative of recurrence and metastasis, the cytokeratin-positive cells in lymph node biopsies, were also compared. In a preoperative comparison of serum tumor markers, CA125 levels in stage Ia and Ic patients were 47.1+/-15.9 (median, 31.9 U/ml) and 370.6+/-146.2 U/ml (median, 135.6 U/ml), respectively (p=0.0457), and CA19-9 levels were 25.5+/-5.5 (median, 20.4 U/ml) and 564.5+/-192.4 U/ml (median, 248.0 U/ml), respectively (p=0.0131). In a comparison of tumor diameters during surgery, diameters of stage Ia and Ic patients were 117.3+/-11.4 (median, 100.0 mm) and 182.0+/-29.2 mm (median, 145.0 mm), respectively (p=0.0457). ONCs were not detected in any stage Ia patients, but detected in 3 (30%) stage Ic patients. In conclusion, clinical progression was evaluated using CA125 and CA19-9 serum markers and tumor diameters in stage Ia and Ic patients, and demonstrated significant differences between stage. ONCs were only detected in the lymph nodes of stage Ic patients.     

Pelvic recurrence after Miles' operation for anastomotic recurrence in a patient with stage I rectal cancer invading the proper muscle layer: Case report

We performed D2 low anterior resection in a patient with stage I rectal cancer [pathological diagnosis: proper muscle (pm) invasion, n0, lymphatic invasion (ly), (-); venous invasion (v), (-); anal margin, (-)]. The tumor recurred at the anastomotic site approximately one year later and was treated with Miles' operation [pm, n0, ly (+); v (-); deep border of the primary tumor (-)]. The tumor marker CEA increased to 50.4 ng/ml at four months after surgery and pelvic local recurrence was detected. Since then, the patient has been receiving chemoradiotherapy on an out-patient basis. Cytokeratin immunostaining of all the lymph nodes collected during the two operations showed clusters of occult neoplastic cells (ONCs) in the perinodal fat around the nodes harvested at the first operation. These findings suggest that the risk of local recurrence of rectal cancer is increased even in stage I disease if ONCs are found in the perinodal fat. Further studies are required to examine the relationship between local recurrence and extranodal ONCs in patients with primary rectal cancer.     

癌瘤转移规律的探讨

在 4 0 0例恶性肿瘤尸解中 ,32 1例 (80 3% )癌 ,79例肉瘤 ,其中 6 5例淋巴瘤 ,14例 (3 5 % )为软组织及骨肿瘤 ,肿瘤转移到肝及肺最常见。有 16 3例转移到肺及肝 ,各占 4 0 5 %。肝的转移瘤依次主要来自乳腺、大肠、卵巢、胃及非何杰金淋巴瘤 (NHL)。肺的转移瘤主要来自乳腺、肝、NHL ,胃及卵巢。淋巴结转移主要累及颈部、纵隔及主动脉周围淋巴结。广泛转移的肿瘤是肺癌、胃癌、乳腺癌和淋巴瘤。尸检材料显示 ,宫颈癌、膀胱癌、咽癌及睾丸肿瘤主要是局部侵犯 ,转移并不广泛。本研究显示 ,恶性肿瘤的扩散与转移基本有下列方式 :直接侵袭 :很多肿瘤可能直接累及周围组织。例如胃肠癌 ,癌细胞沿着肌组织间隙进入临近器官。淋巴管扩散 :任何器官或组织的肿瘤细胞可能进入淋巴管而转移到局部或远处淋巴结 ,它是癌的主要转移方式。血道转移 :远处转移在尸检材料中很常见 ,最常累及的器官是肝和肺 ,特别是软组织肉瘤 ,但晚期癌也很常见血道转移。种植性转移 :这也是很常见的转移方式 ,特别是胃癌、大肠癌、卵巢癌等。本研究也显示与癌瘤手术标本对比研究、肿瘤转移与临床分期、肿瘤部位、组织学类型及分化程度等有密切关系     

Expression of p27Kip1, cyclin E and E2F-1 in primary and metastatic tumors of gastric carcinoma.

The cell cycle is controlled by positive and negative regulators. Gene abnormalities and aberrant expressions of various cyclins/CDKs and CDK inhibitors may play a pivotal role in stomach carcinogenesis. To clarify the role of cyclin E, CDK inhibitor p27Kip1 and their target molecule, E2F-1 in tumor metastasis, we examined immunohistochemically the expression of cyclin E, p27Kip1 and E2F-1 in 23 gastric carcinomas and metastatic tumors of the lymph node. Most of gastric carcinomas with lymph node metastasis showed reduced p27Kip1 expression. p27Kip1 was negative in 39% (9/23) of primary tumors, while it was so in 52% (12/23) of lymph node metastases. By comparison of p27Kip1 expression in primary and metastatic tumors in individual cases, metastatic tumor cells in the lymph nodes were expressed at weaker levels than in those in primary tumors in 43% (10/23) of the cases. On the other hand, over 70% (17/23) and 50% (12/23) of the cases expressed cyclin E and E2F-1 at nearly the same levels in both primary tumor and lymph node metastasis, respectively. These results suggest that tumor cells with reduced p27Kip1 expression may selectively metastasize to lymph node or distant organs.     

Predicting recurrence and metastasis of stage III/Dukes' C colorectal cancer with lymph node metastasis

This study was designed to compare the prediction of recurrence based on detection of occult neoplastic cells (ONCs) in lymph nodes or using specific criteria to identify patients at high risk of recurrence/metastasis among 105 patients with Dukes' C colorectal cancer. Prediction of recurrence based on the detection of ONCs had a sensitivity of 50.0% (22/44), specificity of 80.3% (49/61), and an accuracy of 65.2%. Prediction of recurrence based on positivity for at least 2 of the 3 high-risk criteria had a sensitivity of 54.5% (24/44), specificity of 83.6% (51/61), and an accuracy of 69.1%. Among the 34 patients with ONCs, prediction of recurrence based on positivity for all 3 high-risk criteria had a sensitivity of 27.3% (6/22), specificity of 91.7% (11/12), an accuracy of 59.5%, and a positive predictive value (PPV) of 85.7% (6/7). These results suggest that the predictive value of ONCs and the high-risk criteria was similar, and that recurrence is likely to occur in patients who fulfill < or =2 of the high-risk criteria. Accordingly, combined use of these parameters may be more effective for the early prediction of recurrence/metastasis to assist in the choice of postoperative systemic chemotherapy.     

Predicting recurrence and metastasis of stage II/Dukes' B colorectal cancer without lymph node metastasis

This study was designed to compare the prediction of recurrence based on detection of occult neoplastic cells (ONCs) in lymph nodes or by using high-risk criteria for recurrence/metastasis in patients with Dukes' B colorectal cancer. Prediction of recurrence based on the detection of ONCs had a sensitivity of 59.1% (13/22), a false-positive rate of 7.8% (8/102), a specificity of 92.2% (94/102), and a negative predictive value (NPV) of 91.3% (94/103). Prediction of recurrence based on positivity for at least 2 of the 3 high-risk criteria had a sensitivity of 90.9% (20/22), a false-positive rate of 49.0% (50/102), a specificity of 51.0% (52/102), and an NPV of 96.3% (52/54). Among the 21 patients in whom ONCs were detected, prediction of recurrence based on the presence of all 3 high-risk criteria including ONCs had a sensitivity of 84.6% (11/13) and a positive predictive value (PPV) of 78.6% (11/14). These results suggest that colorectal cancer is unlikely to recur in patients without ONCs, while recurrence is likely in patients who fulfill 2 or more of the high-risk criteria. Accordingly, a combination of these parameters may be useful for the early prediction of recurrence/metastasis to assist in the choice of postoperative systemic chemotherapy.     

结肠癌根治术后复发转移的单因素和多因素分析

背景与目的:目前国内外有关结肠癌根治术后复发转移的预后报道尚不多,且研究结果不一。本研究旨在探讨结肠癌患者根治术后复发转移的相关临床病理因素。方法:选择1999年1月至2000年12月在中山大学肿瘤医院行结肠癌根治术患者152例,Cox模型分析临床病理因素与复发转移的关系。结果:全组复发转移率为19.74%,肝转移率为9.87%。单因素分析显示,有无输血、病程、肿瘤大小、肿块活动度、分化程度、Dukes@分期、淋巴结转移与结肠癌术后复发转移有关,有无输血、术前血清CEA水平、肿块活动度、分化程度、Dukes@分期、淋巴结转移与术后肝转移有关;多因素分析显示,肿块活动度、分化程度、淋巴结转移与结肠癌术后复发转移有关,术前血清CEA水平、分化程度、淋巴结转移与术后肝转移有关。结论:肿块活动度、分化程度和淋巴结转移是影响结肠癌患者根治术后复发转移的重要预后因素,术前血清CEA升高、肿瘤分化不良、淋巴结转移的患者术后肝转移的风险增大。     

Two cases of complete response of primary esophageal carcinoma treated with 5-FU/CDDP as neoadjuvant chemotherapy

CASE 1: A 67-year-old man with lower thoracic esophageal carcinoma, T2N0M0, cStage II, underwent neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NAC) with 5-FU/CDDP. After 2 courses of NAC, radical resection of the esophageal carcinoma was performed. Primary tumor was not palpable, and lymph node swelling was not found in the resected specimens. Pathologic examination of the resected specimens revealed no malignant cells in the esophagus. Histologic effect of the NAC was grade 3. We obtained down-staging of carcinoma in T0N0M0, fStage 0. CASE 2: A 58-year-old man with thoracic esophageal cancer, T3N2M0, cStage III, underwent NAC with 5-FU/CDDP. After 2 courses of NAC, radical resection of the esophageal carcinoma was performed. Primary tumor was not found in the resected specimens. Pathologic examination of the resected specimens revealed only an irregular fibrosis of esophageal wall, and no malignant cells in the esophagus. Two lymph node metastasis and surrounding fibrosis was found. We obtained down-staging of carcinoma in T0N2M0, fStage II. We report two cases of complete response of primary esophageal carcinoma treated with 5-FU/CDDP as neoadjuvant chemotherapy.     

循环肿瘤细胞及其与肿瘤转移复发的相关性研究

肿瘤细胞血液播散至远处器官和后来形成的转移灶是上皮来源恶性肿瘤最主要的死亡原因。对恶性肿瘤发生远处转移和复发等研究认为是由外周血中存在的循环肿瘤细胞所致（circulating tumor cell,CTC）。CTCs存在于外周循环中,激发机体的免疫反应,大部分肿瘤细胞被机体免疫系统所识别难以生存,只有小部分细胞继续在循环中,穿透基底膜,侵出血管在远端形成肿瘤转移灶。CTCs是肿瘤发生远处转移的必要条件,深入研究循环肿瘤细胞有助于对肿瘤的转移机制有更多的了解。本文对CTCs的分离与鉴定技术方法和CTCs与肿瘤复发转移的机制进行综述。     

肺癌细胞MICA／B表达与纵隔淋巴结转移的关系

 目的　探讨肺癌细胞MICA／B分子表达与纵隔淋巴结转移的相关性。方法　采集30例肺癌患者手术切除组织标本,新鲜肺癌组织作为试验组,癌旁组织作为对照组,采用流式细胞术测定肺癌细胞表面MICA／B分子的表达,全部患者术中系统清扫淋巴结作病理检查,根据有无淋巴结转移分成N0、N1、N2 3组,比较3组MICA／B分子的表达情况。结果　肺癌组织细胞表面MICA／B表达阳性率（0.3788±0.2398）%,与癌旁组织的（0.1908±0.1760）%比较,差异有统计学意义（P＜0.01）。N0组与N1组、N1组与N2组MICA／B表达差异无统计学意义（P＞0.05）,N0组与N2组MICA／B表达差异有统计学意义（P＜0.05）。结论　MICA／B高表达于肺癌组织细胞表面。肺癌纵隔淋巴结转移时,MICA／B表达明显增高,预后较差。MICA／B表达可作为发生纵隔淋巴结转移的一个指标。     

The natural course of cutaneous melanoma

The natural course of cutaneous melanoma (CM) is determined by its metastatic spread and depends on tumor thickness, ulceration, gender, localization, and the histologic subtype of the primary tumor. CM metastasis develops via three main metastatic pathways and occurs as satellite or in-transit metastasis, as regional lymph node metastasis or as distant metastasis at the time of primary recurrence. About 50% of all CM patients with tumor progression firstly develop regional lymph node metastases. In the other 50% the first metastases are satellite or in-transit metastases (about 20%), or immediately distant metastases (about 30%). Development of distant metastasis appears to be an early event in metastatic spread and may in the majority of cases originate from the primary tumor, only few cases may develop secondarily to locoregional metastasis. Reporting of organ involvement in distant metastasis greatly differs between the results of imaging techniques and autopsy results in respect to the metastatic patterns detected, pointing out that there is a need of improved imaging systems. Proliferation, neovascularization, lymphangiogenesis, invasion, circulation, and embolism are important steps in the pathogenesis of CM metastasis, with tumor vascularity as an important independent significant prognostic factor. The expression of chemokine receptors in cancer cells associated with the expression of the respective chemokine receptor ligands in the target sites of the metastasis is an interesting observation which may stimulate the development of new therapeutic strategies.     

非小细胞肺癌的淋巴结转移相关因素及规律的探讨

  目的  探讨原发性非小细胞肺癌(NSCLC)年龄、性别、吸烟指数、肿瘤大小、病理类型、细胞分化程度与淋巴结转移的关系, 分析纵隔淋巴结转移的临床规律及分布特点。  方法  对96例非小细胞肺癌行肺切除术和淋巴结清扫术的患者进行临床病理分析。  结果  淋巴结转移与年龄、性别、吸烟指数无关, 肿瘤大小与淋巴结转移差异无统计学意义。高、中、低分化癌淋巴结转移率分别为15.8%、47.8%和59.0%, 肿瘤分化程度越低, 纵隔淋巴结转移率越高(P < 0.05)。病理类型与淋巴结转移无相关性, 鳞癌、腺癌的N₂转移率分别为13.6%、34.0%。肺腺癌较鳞癌易发生纵隔淋巴结转移(P < 0.05)。中心型肺癌与周围型肺癌纵隔淋巴结转移率差异无统计学意义(P > 0.05)。跳跃性N₂有12例, 跳跃式纵隔转移共9例。肺癌常跨区域纵隔转移, 肺下叶癌跨区域纵隔转移与肺上叶癌比较差异无统计学意义(P > 0.05)。  结论  非小细胞肺癌的淋巴结转移与细胞分化程度有密切关系, 与年龄、性别、吸烟指数、病理类型、原发肿瘤大小无关; 肺腺癌较鳞癌易发生纵隔淋巴结转移; 多数肺癌的淋巴结转移遵循由近及远、自上而下、由肺内经肺门再向纵隔的顺序转移规律; 部分纵隔淋巴结的转移呈"跳跃式"; 肺切除术时,施行系统性胸内淋巴结清扫是必要的。