Dedifferentiation in the metastatic progression of prostate carcinoma

✍ Scribed by Liang Cheng; Jeff Slezak; Erik J. Bergstralh; John C. Cheville; Susan Sweat; Horst Zincke; David G. Bostwick

• Publisher: John Wiley and Sons
• Year: 1999
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 490 KB
• Volume: 86
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 0008-543X
• DOI: 10.1002/(sici)1097-0142(19990815)86:4<657::aid-cncr15>3.0.co;2-9

✦ Synopsis

BACKGROUND.

Dedifferentiation is a distinctive feature of cancer progression.

Detailed histologic analysis of primary prostate carcinoma and synchronous lymph node metastases may improve our understanding of the complex process of cancer progression and metastasis.

METHODS.

The authors studied 242 regional lymph node positive prostate carcinoma patients who underwent radical prostatectomy and bilateral lymphadenectomy between 1987 and 1992 at the Mayo Clinic. Patients ranged in age from 47-79 years (median, 66 years). The median follow-up was 6.1 years. Gleason scores of lymph node metastases and primary tumors were compared and correlated with systemic disease progression. Histologic dedifferentiation was defined as a higher Gleason grade in the lymph node metastases than in the primary tumor. Systemic disease progression was defined as the presence of distant metastases documented by biopsies, abdominal computed tomography, plain radiograph, or bone scan.