The case for completing the lymphadenectomy when positive lymph nodes are found during radical hysterectomy for cervical carcinoma

BACKGROUND: In the present study we report on the results of a retrospective study on the effect on survival of the pelvic lymphadenectomy in a group of 294 patients with stage Ia2-IIa cervical carcinoma treated by radical hysterectomy from 1984 through 1996 at the Leiden University Medical Center. METHODS: Lymphadenectomy was called 'complete' when lymph node bearing tissue had been removed from 5 or 6 lymph node stations and 'not-complete' when this was the case in 1-4 stations. RESULTS: A radical hysterectomy was carried out in 294 patients. In 63 patients positive lymph nodes were found. Patients with positive nodes showed poorer 5 year survival: 64.5% compared to 90% in patients with negative nodes. In the univariate analysis the following factors were found to affect the presence of node metastases in a statistically significant way: age, tumor size, depth of infiltration, vaso-invasion, surgical margins, parametrial infiltration, stage and place of referral. In 63 patients with positive nodes, a complete lymphadenectomy was carried out in 23 patients, and in 40 patients the procedure was incomplete. All 63 patients were treated by adjuvant radiation therapy; those with complete lymphadenectomy had significantly less recurrences (25%) compared to those with incomplete lymphadenectomy (56%): the relative risk (RR) was 2.9 (95% ci: 1.3-6.7), p=0.012. After adjustment for other prognostic factors including tumor size, depth of infiltration and parametrial involvement, the complete lymphadenectomy showed an independent effect on disease free survival: RR= 3.2 (95% ci: 1.3-7.7), p=0.011. Prognostic factors were not significantly different for patients with complete or incomplete lymphadenectomy. CONCLUSIONS: From the results of this study, although retrospective and non randomized, it can be concluded that to complete removal of lymph nodes in combination with radical hysterectomy seems to have a beneficial effect on prognosis in case of positive nodes. The policy of aborting the procedure when lymph node metastases are found in frozen section should be questioned.