Adjuvant Radiotherapy Following Radical Hysterectomy and Bilateral Pelvic Lymph Node Dissection for the Uterine Cervical Cancer: Prognostic Factors and Failure Patterns

Choi, Doo Ho

Abstract

PURPOSE
To identify variable prognostic factors and analyse failure patterns in the uterine cervix cancer after radical operation and adjuvant radiotherapy, a retrospective analysis was undertaken.
MATERIALS AND METHODS
I analysed one hundred and twenty four patients with uterine cervix cancer, FIGO stage IB, IIA and IIB, treated with radical hysterectomy and pelvic lymph node dissection followed by adjuvant radiotherapy between May 1985 and May 1994. Minimum follow up period was 24 months. All of them were treated with full dose external radiotherapy with linear accelerator and/or high dose rate intracavitary radiation.
RESULTS
Overall 5 year survival rate and relapse free survival rate were 75.4%, 73.5%, respectively. Significant prognostic factors by relapse free survival were wall involvement thickness, lymph node location and number, parametrium involvement, tumor size, stage, uterine body involvement, vaginal resection margin involvement. By multivariate analysis, lymph node metastasis, tumor size and vaginal resection margin involvement were significant prognostic factors.Treatment related failure were 33 cases. Locoregional failure were more likely in the stage IIB, lymph node positive or vaginal resection margin positive patients whereas distant failures were relatively more frequent in stage IB, IIA and lymph node, vaginal resection negative patients. In stage IIB, 5 year relapse free survival rate was only 56% and nine of twenty two patients recurred.
CONCLUSION
Postoperative radiotherapy results are good for patients with relatively low risk factor. But the results are poor for patients with multiple, high risk factors or stage IIB. To control recurrence for patients with high risk factors, postoperative adjuvant radiotherapy is not sufficient treatment method. To raise control rate, adding other methods such as radiosensitizing agent or chemotherapy is necessary and prospectively randomized study is needed for evaluation of postoperative radiotherapy efficacy and /or othermethods. And it is reasonable to treat primary radical radiotherapy for patients with stage IIB cervical cancer instead of radical operation and adjuvant radiotherapy and/or chemotherapy regimen.