[A study of correlation between early postoperative relapse with lymph node micrometastasis in patients with N0 esophageal cancer]

Abstract

Objective: To explore the correlation between early postoperative tumor relapse with lymph node micrometastasis in the patients with pN(0) esophageal cancer.

Methods: Using reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR), one hundred and sixty-six regional lymph nodes obtained from forty-three patients with esophagus cancer without invasion of the tumor confirmed by histopathologic analysis (pN(0)) were studied for further detecting mRNA of Mucin1 (MUC1) gene and determining nodal micrometastasis. All the patients underwent radical resection and regional lymph node dissection. Patients were followed up for one year to detect early tumor relapse. Difference in relapse was compared by chi(2) test.

Results: MUC1 mRNA expression was identified for twenty-six lymph nodes (15.7%), in eighteen patients (42%) who were diagnosed as having nodal micrometastasis. TNM staging for these patients was up-regulated from stages I-II(A) to stages II(B)-III. Relapse disease was found in nine patients with lymph nodes micrometastasis and three patients without nodal micrometastasis (P < 0.05).

Conclusion: Early tumor relapse after radical surgery in the patients with pN(0) esophageal cancer might be correlated with nodal micrometastasis.