Discrepancies between clinical and pathologic staging in tumors of the larynx: Evaluation of the probable causes and influence in overall survival

Introduction: TNM staging plays a central role in therapeutic decision-making, being also useful for estimating prognosis. Clinical staging (cTNM) is based on physical examination, endoscopy e imaging studies. Pathological staging (pTNM) is based on histopathological analysis after the surgical pro...

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Main Authors: António Fontes Lima, Filipa Carvalho Moreira, Cátia Azevedo, Isabel Costa, Fernando Milhazes Mar, Miguel Sá Breda, Nuno Ribeiro Costa, Luís Dias
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Portuguese Society of Otolaryngology and Head and Neck Surgery 2021-06-01
Series:Revista Portuguesa Otorrinolaringologia e Cirurgia de Cabeça e Pescoço
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Online Access:https://journalsporl.com/index.php/sporl/article/view/2866
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author António Fontes Lima
Filipa Carvalho Moreira
Cátia Azevedo
Isabel Costa
Fernando Milhazes Mar
Miguel Sá Breda
Nuno Ribeiro Costa
Luís Dias
author_facet António Fontes Lima
Filipa Carvalho Moreira
Cátia Azevedo
Isabel Costa
Fernando Milhazes Mar
Miguel Sá Breda
Nuno Ribeiro Costa
Luís Dias
author_sort António Fontes Lima
collection DOAJ
description Introduction: TNM staging plays a central role in therapeutic decision-making, being also useful for estimating prognosis. Clinical staging (cTNM) is based on physical examination, endoscopy e imaging studies. Pathological staging (pTNM) is based on histopathological analysis after the surgical procedure. Discrepancies between cTNM and pTNM in larynx cancer have been reported in the literature, but some controversies remain.  Material and methods: a retrospective analysis of the patients who underwent surgery for larynx cancer (LC) in Hospital de Braga between January of 2013 and December of 2017 was performed. Patients who underwent total laryngectomy (TL) and partial laryngectomy (PL) associated with neck dissection. The following data were retrieved: age, gender, location, cTNM, and pTNM, time between first histopathological diagnosis and surgery, 5-year overall survival (OS), relapse, and death. For analysis purposes, the staging was performed according to American Joint Committee on Cancer 8th Edition, 2017.  Results: of the 72 patients diagnosed with LC, 47 were included in the analysis. 17% (n=8) underwent PL, while 83% (n=39) underwent TL. There was a discrepancy between cTNM and pTNM in 66% of the patients: a different T in 44,7%, with a low Cohen Kappa coefficient of 0,310 (p = 0,01), and a different N in 29,8%, with a substantial Cohen Kappa coefficient of 0,688 (p < 0,001). The most common reason for upstaging T was the invasion of the outer cortex of the thyroid cartilage, and the most frequent reason for downstaging was apparent vocal cord fixation in the preoperative examination. The median of the days between histopathological diagnosis and surgery in the patients whose T was upstaged was significantly different (superior) than other patients. Tumors located in the glottis were associated with a T downstaging (p = 0,020). There was no statistically significant difference in survival curves between patients with and without discrepancies in cTNM and pTNM.  Discussion and conclusions: our results show higher rates of re-staging than the ones described in the literature, that vary between 20 and 55%. New evaluation methods, such as imaging studies with better diagnostic accuracy, and, on the other hand, reducing the time between first diagnosis and surgical treatment may be important to reduce the rates of discrepancy between cTNM and pTNM. Despite re-staging being frequent, according to our data, it is not associated with worse OS. 
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spelling doaj-art-e8fd1e9c2aed4b3488e55dbbfab89cf42025-08-20T03:29:28ZengPortuguese Society of Otolaryngology and Head and Neck SurgeryRevista Portuguesa Otorrinolaringologia e Cirurgia de Cabeça e Pescoço2184-64992021-06-0159210.34631/sporl.853Discrepancies between clinical and pathologic staging in tumors of the larynx: Evaluation of the probable causes and influence in overall survivalAntónio Fontes Lima0Filipa Carvalho Moreira1Cátia Azevedo2Isabel Costa3Fernando Milhazes Mar4Miguel Sá Breda5Nuno Ribeiro Costa6Luís Dias7Hospital de Braga, PortugalHospital de Braga, PortugalHospital de Braga, PortugalHospital de Braga, PortugalHospital de Braga, PortugalHospital de Braga, PortugalHospital de Braga, PortugalHospital de Braga, Portugal Introduction: TNM staging plays a central role in therapeutic decision-making, being also useful for estimating prognosis. Clinical staging (cTNM) is based on physical examination, endoscopy e imaging studies. Pathological staging (pTNM) is based on histopathological analysis after the surgical procedure. Discrepancies between cTNM and pTNM in larynx cancer have been reported in the literature, but some controversies remain.  Material and methods: a retrospective analysis of the patients who underwent surgery for larynx cancer (LC) in Hospital de Braga between January of 2013 and December of 2017 was performed. Patients who underwent total laryngectomy (TL) and partial laryngectomy (PL) associated with neck dissection. The following data were retrieved: age, gender, location, cTNM, and pTNM, time between first histopathological diagnosis and surgery, 5-year overall survival (OS), relapse, and death. For analysis purposes, the staging was performed according to American Joint Committee on Cancer 8th Edition, 2017.  Results: of the 72 patients diagnosed with LC, 47 were included in the analysis. 17% (n=8) underwent PL, while 83% (n=39) underwent TL. There was a discrepancy between cTNM and pTNM in 66% of the patients: a different T in 44,7%, with a low Cohen Kappa coefficient of 0,310 (p = 0,01), and a different N in 29,8%, with a substantial Cohen Kappa coefficient of 0,688 (p < 0,001). The most common reason for upstaging T was the invasion of the outer cortex of the thyroid cartilage, and the most frequent reason for downstaging was apparent vocal cord fixation in the preoperative examination. The median of the days between histopathological diagnosis and surgery in the patients whose T was upstaged was significantly different (superior) than other patients. Tumors located in the glottis were associated with a T downstaging (p = 0,020). There was no statistically significant difference in survival curves between patients with and without discrepancies in cTNM and pTNM.  Discussion and conclusions: our results show higher rates of re-staging than the ones described in the literature, that vary between 20 and 55%. New evaluation methods, such as imaging studies with better diagnostic accuracy, and, on the other hand, reducing the time between first diagnosis and surgical treatment may be important to reduce the rates of discrepancy between cTNM and pTNM. Despite re-staging being frequent, according to our data, it is not associated with worse OS.  https://journalsporl.com/index.php/sporl/article/view/2866larynx cancer TNM staging
spellingShingle António Fontes Lima
Filipa Carvalho Moreira
Cátia Azevedo
Isabel Costa
Fernando Milhazes Mar
Miguel Sá Breda
Nuno Ribeiro Costa
Luís Dias
Discrepancies between clinical and pathologic staging in tumors of the larynx: Evaluation of the probable causes and influence in overall survival
Revista Portuguesa Otorrinolaringologia e Cirurgia de Cabeça e Pescoço
larynx cancer
TNM staging
title Discrepancies between clinical and pathologic staging in tumors of the larynx: Evaluation of the probable causes and influence in overall survival
title_full Discrepancies between clinical and pathologic staging in tumors of the larynx: Evaluation of the probable causes and influence in overall survival
title_fullStr Discrepancies between clinical and pathologic staging in tumors of the larynx: Evaluation of the probable causes and influence in overall survival
title_full_unstemmed Discrepancies between clinical and pathologic staging in tumors of the larynx: Evaluation of the probable causes and influence in overall survival
title_short Discrepancies between clinical and pathologic staging in tumors of the larynx: Evaluation of the probable causes and influence in overall survival
title_sort discrepancies between clinical and pathologic staging in tumors of the larynx evaluation of the probable causes and influence in overall survival
topic larynx cancer
TNM staging
url https://journalsporl.com/index.php/sporl/article/view/2866
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