ISSN: 1837-9664Journal of Cancer
Global reach, higher impact
J Cancer 2017; 8(6):959-966. doi:10.7150/jca.17998 This issue Cite
Research Paper
Influence of Cervical Node Necrosis of Different Grades on the Prognosis of Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma Patients Treated with Intensity-Modulated Radiotherapy
1. Department of Radiation Oncology, Sun Yat-sen University Cancer Center, State Key Laboratory of Oncology in South China, Collaborative Innovation Center for Cancer Medicine, 651 Dongfeng Road East, Guangzhou 510060, People's Republic of China;
2. Department of Oncology, First People's Hospital of Zhaoqing City, Guangdong, People's Republic of China;
3. Department of Medical Statistics and Epidemiology, School of Public Health, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, People's Republic of China.
* These authors contributed equally to this work.
Abstract
Background: To analyze the prognostic value of cervical node necrosis (CNN) observed on pretreatment magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in patients with nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) treated with intensity-modulated radiotherapy (IMRT).
Patients and Methods: The medical records of 1423 NPC patients with cervical node metastasis who underwent IMRT were retrospectively reviewed. Lymph nodes in the axial plane of pretreatment MRI were classified as follows: grade 0 CNN, no hypodense zones; grade 1 CNN, ≤33% areas showing hypodense zones; and grade 2, >33% areas showing hypodense zones.
Results: CNN was detectable in 470/1423 (33%) patients. Of these 470 patients, 213 (15%) and 257 (18%) exhibited grade 1 and grade 2 CNN. The grade 0 and grade 1 CNN groups showed significant differences with regard to distant metastasis-free survival (DMFS), but not overall survival (OS), regional relapse-free survival (RRFS), local relapse-free survival (LRFS), and disease-free survival (DFS). Significant differences were observed among the grade 0 and grade 2 CNN groups with regard to OS, RRFS, LRFS, DMFS, and DFS. Moreover, OS, LRFS, RRFS, and DFS were significantly different between the grade 1 and grade 2 CNN groups, whereas DMFS showed no significant differences. Univariate and multivariate analyses revealed CNN on MRI as a significant negative prognostic factor for OS, LRFS, RRFS, DMFS, and DFS in NPC patients.
Conclusions: NPC patients with CNN of different grades show various prognosis and failure patterns after IMRT. CNN on MRI can be adopted as a predictive factor for formulating individualized treatment plans for NPC patients.
Keywords: Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma, Cervical Node necrosis, Intensity-Modulated Radiation Therapy, Prognosis.
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