BACKGROUND: Lymph node metastasis in oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) is associated with poor prognosis. The 8th edition of TNM has implemented new nodal staging criteria. We assess the prognostic utility of the lymph node ratio (LNR) and compare it to that of pN in the TNM 8th edition. METHODS: One hundred and forty-two patients with OSCC were retrospectively studied. Nodal staging was performed using the TMN 8th edition and the prognostic value of the LNR in terms of overall survival (OS) and disease-free survival (DFS) was evaluated. RESULTS: Fifty-seven patients were eligible for inclusion. The LNR was independently prognostic of OS (p = 0.02). Instead N classification was not significantly predictive of OS (p = 0.10). High LNRs resulted in decreases in OS of approximately 40% within 6 months after surgery. CONCLUSIONS: The LNR identifies patients with poor outcomes better than N classification. The lack of reliable LNR cutoffs compromises its utility in clinical practice.
No clinical trial protocols linked to this paper
Clinical trials are automatically linked when NCT numbers are found in the paper's title or abstract.PICO Elements
No PICO elements extracted yet. Click "Extract PICO" to analyze this paper.
Paper Details
MeSH Terms
Associated Data
No associated datasets or code repositories found for this paper.
Related Papers
Related paper suggestions will be available in future updates.