Abstract:
Objective This study aimed to investigate the clinicopathological factors predictive of lymph node metastasis(LNM) in intramucosal poorly differentiated early gastric cancer(EGC), and to expand the possibility of laparoscopic surgery for treating poorly differentiated EGC.
Methods Data of 60 patients with intramucosal poorly differentiated EGC and surgically treated in our hospital were collected. The association between the LNM and clinicopathological factors was retrospectively analyzed using univariate and multivariate logistic regression analyses.
Results Univariate analysis showed that the tumor size, number of tumors, and lymphatic vessel involvement(LVI) were the significant and independent risk factors for LNM. The LNM rate was 66.7% in patients with the three risk factors. LNM was not found in patients without the three clinicopathological risk factors.
Conclusion The tumor size, number of the tumors, and LVI were independently associated with the presence of LNM in intramucosal poorly differentiated EGC. Laparoscopic wedge resection can be sufficient to treat patients without the risk factors. Gastrectomy with lymphadenectomy is inevitable for patients with the risk factors.