Endometrial cancer patients could benefit from lymph node removal
POSTED February 27, 2010 - 11:56 | POSTED BY Kangna Agarwal
Last edited by Kangna Agarwal on February 27, 2010 - 12:31
The study published in the Lancet looked at the survival rates of women who had undergone surgery for the removal of both pelvic lymph nodes and para-aortic lymph nodes.
671 women studied
A research team from the Hokkaido University Graduate School of Medicine in Japan examined 671 women with endometrial cancer, a condition which affects the tissue that lines the uterus.
Of these, 325 women had undergone surgery to remove pelvic lymph nodes, while 346 had both sets of lymph nodes--pelvic and para-aortic lymph nodes--removed at two expert centers in Japan from 1986 to 2004.
Of all the patients, 328 women who were at a medium to high risk of cancer relapse were also given additional treatment in the form of chemotherapy or radiotherapy.
Outcome of the study
Those who had undergone surgery to remove both sets of lymph nodes were found to have 56 percent better survival chances compared to those who had only pelvic lymph nodes removed.
On the other hand, the researchers found that removal of both sets of lymph nodes appeared to cast no impact on those who had a minimal risk of cancer recurrence.
The risk of dying of cancer declined to 52 percent for women who received the complete treatment--removal of both sets of lymph nodes as well as chemotherapy--compared to 41 percent for women who did not receive the complete procedure.
The study suggests that those at medium to high risk of cancer recurrence should undergo surgery for removal of both pelvic and para-aortic lymph nodes. And additional procedure, chemotherapy or radiotherapy, may further better their survival chances.
Study authors Professor Noriaki Sakuragi and Dr Yukiharu Todo, elaborated, "Findings from the SEPAL study have shown that para-aorticlymphadenectomy has survival benefits for patients at intermediate or high risk of recurrence, and that pelvic lymphadenectomy alone might be an insufficient surgical procedure for endometrial cancer in patients at risk of lymph node metastasis.
“Combined pelvic and para-aortic lymphadenectomy is recommended as treatment for patients with endometrial carcinoma of intermediate or high risk of recurrence".
The study has been published online in the Feb. 24 issue of the Journal Lancet.
Endometrial cancer and symptoms
Endometrial cancer is the growth of abnormal cells in the lining of the uterus. It is also called uterine cancer.
It usually occurs in post-menopausal women mainly due to hormonal imbalance.
The most common symptom of the disease is abnormal bleeding from vagina after menopause. Other symptoms may include weight loss, anemia caused by chronic loss of blood, and lower abdominal pain.
