Prognostic significance of the number of metastatic lymph nodes in patients with gastric cancer.

To confirm the prognostic significance of the number of the metastatic lymph nodes (MLN) in cases of gastric cancer, the results of surgical treatment of 668 patients with primary gastric cancer were analyzed retrospectively. Five-year survival rates were calculated with reference to the number of MLN, namely, none (89.2%), one to three (77.4%), four to six (55.8%), and seven or more (36.2%). Furthermore, even when the cancer had invaded the serosa, 5-year survival was significantly more frequent in patients with one to three MLN (71.7%) than in those with four to six (35.5%) or more than six (31.5%) (P less than 0.01), and the 5-year survival was close to that of patients with no MLN (70.5%). Not only qualitative but also quantitative evaluation of lymph node metastasis is essential for estimating the prognosis of patients with gastric cancer.