Jae Kwang Yun1, Hyeong Ryul Kim2, Dong Kwan Kim1, Young Mog Shim3, Young Tae Kim4, Kyung Young Chung5. 1. Department of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery, Asan Medical Center, Ulsan University College of Medicine, Seoul, Republic of Korea. 2. Department of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery, Asan Medical Center, Ulsan University College of Medicine, Seoul, Republic of Korea. Electronic address: drhrkim10@gmail.com. 3. Department of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery, Samsung Medical Center, Sungkyunkwan University School of Medicine, Seoul, Republic of Korea. 4. Department of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery, Seoul National University Hospital, Seoul National University College of Medicine, Seoul, Republic of Korea. 5. Department of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery, Severance Hospital, Yonsei University College of Medicine, Seoul, Republic of Korea.
Abstract
OBJECTIVE: The prognostic significance of tumor size in thymic epithelial tumors (TETs) has not been fully evaluated. We aimed to clarify the prognostic value of tumor size in limited-stage and advanced-stage TETs. METHODS: Clinical records of patients with completely resected TETs were retrospectively collected from 4 tertiary centers between January 2000 and February 2013. Information on the Masaoka-Koga stage was available for 1215 patients (M-K group), and 433 patients were classified according to the eighth edition of the Tumor-Node-Metastasis staging system (TNM group). Limited-stage and advanced-stage TETs were defined according to whether they were confined within the surrounding fatty tissues without invasion. The optimal cutoff value was selected using a maximally selected log-rank statistic. RESULTS: The median tumor size was 6.0 ± 2.8 cm in the M-K group and 6.5 ± 3.0 cm in the TNM group. In the multivariable analysis, tumor size had a significant effect on both overall survival (P = .003) and recurrence-free survival (P < .001) for limited-stage tumors (M-K stage I or II or TNM stage I), but not for advanced-stage tumors (M-K stage III or IV or TNM stage II-IV; P = .349 for overall survival and P = .439 for recurrence-free survival). The optimal cutoff value for tumor size was >5.5 cm for both overall survival and recurrence-free survival in limited-stage TETs. CONCLUSIONS: Tumor size is an independent prognostic factor in patients with completely resected limited-stage TETs and a cutoff value >5.5 cm might help clinicians enact proper treatment strategies and surveillance.
OBJECTIVE: The prognostic significance of tumor size in thymic epithelial tumors (TETs) has not been fully evaluated. We aimed to clarify the prognostic value of tumor size in limited-stage and advanced-stage TETs. METHODS: Clinical records of patients with completely resected TETs were retrospectively collected from 4 tertiary centers between January 2000 and February 2013. Information on the Masaoka-Koga stage was available for 1215 patients (M-K group), and 433 patients were classified according to the eighth edition of the Tumor-Node-Metastasis staging system (TNM group). Limited-stage and advanced-stage TETs were defined according to whether they were confined within the surrounding fatty tissues without invasion. The optimal cutoff value was selected using a maximally selected log-rank statistic. RESULTS: The median tumor size was 6.0 ± 2.8 cm in the M-K group and 6.5 ± 3.0 cm in the TNM group. In the multivariable analysis, tumor size had a significant effect on both overall survival (P = .003) and recurrence-free survival (P < .001) for limited-stage tumors (M-K stage I or II or TNM stage I), but not for advanced-stage tumors (M-K stage III or IV or TNM stage II-IV; P = .349 for overall survival and P = .439 for recurrence-free survival). The optimal cutoff value for tumor size was >5.5 cm for both overall survival and recurrence-free survival in limited-stage TETs. CONCLUSIONS:Tumor size is an independent prognostic factor in patients with completely resected limited-stage TETs and a cutoff value >5.5 cm might help clinicians enact proper treatment strategies and surveillance.