Evidence map›Paper›PMID 27639568›Full record

ArticleVirchows Archiv : an international journal of pathology2016

A critical evaluation of lymph node ratio in head and neck cancer.

M de Ridder, C C M Marres, L E Smeele, M W M van den Brekel, M Hauptmann, A J M Balm, M L F van Velthuysen

Abstract read
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In one paragraph

Article in Virchows Archiv : an international journal of pathology, 2016. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 11 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
11citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

11 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Article
  2. Article
  3. Number of positive lymph nodes and lymph node ratio predict recurrence and survival in hypopharyngeal cancer based on SEER database and validation of real-world data.European archives of oto-rhino-laryngology : official journal of the European Federation of Oto-Rhino-Laryngological Societies (EUFOS) : affiliated with the German Society for Oto-Rhino-Laryngology - Head and Neck Surgery · 2024
    Article
  4. Article
  5. Article
  6. Article
  7. Article
  8. Lymph node density as a predictive factor for worse outcomes in laryngeal cancer.European archives of oto-rhino-laryngology : official journal of the European Federation of Oto-Rhino-Laryngological Societies (EUFOS) : affiliated with the German Society for Oto-Rhino-Laryngology - Head and Neck Surgery · 2020
    Article
  9. The prognostic value of lymph node ratio in survival of head-and-neck squamous cell carcinoma.Journal of research in medical sciences : the official journal of Isfahan University of Medical Sciences · 2018
    Article
  10. Article
  11. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

7 authors.

M de RidderDepartment of Head and Neck Oncology and Surgery, The Netherlands Cancer Institute, Antoni van Leeuwenhoek, Plesmanlaan 121 Postbus 90203, 1006 BE, Amsterdam, Netherlands. mischa.deridder@amc.uva.nl.
C C M MarresDepartment of Head and Neck Oncology and Surgery, The Netherlands Cancer Institute, Antoni van Leeuwenhoek, Plesmanlaan 121 Postbus 90203, 1006 BE, Amsterdam, Netherlands.
L E SmeeleDepartment of Head and Neck Oncology and Surgery, The Netherlands Cancer Institute, Antoni van Leeuwenhoek, Plesmanlaan 121 Postbus 90203, 1006 BE, Amsterdam, Netherlands.
M W M van den BrekelDepartment of Head and Neck Oncology and Surgery, The Netherlands Cancer Institute, Antoni van Leeuwenhoek, Plesmanlaan 121 Postbus 90203, 1006 BE, Amsterdam, Netherlands.
M HauptmannDepartment of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, The Netherlands Cancer Institute, Amsterdam, Netherlands.
A J M BalmDepartment of Head and Neck Oncology and Surgery, The Netherlands Cancer Institute, Antoni van Leeuwenhoek, Plesmanlaan 121 Postbus 90203, 1006 BE, Amsterdam, Netherlands.
M L F van VelthuysenDepartment of Pathology, The Netherlands Cancer Institute, Amsterdam, Netherlands.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

In head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC), the search for better prognostic factors beyond TNM-stage is ongoing. Lymph node ratio (LNR) (positive lymph nodes/total lymph nodes) is gaining interest in view of its potential prognostic significance. All HNSCC patients at the Netherlands Cancer Institute undergoing neck dissection for lymph node metastases in the neck region between 2002 and 2012 (n = 176) were included. Based on a protocol change in specimen processing, the cohort was subdivided in two distinct consecutive periods (pre and post 2007). The prognostic value of LNR, N-stage, and number of positive lymph nodes for overall survival was assessed. The mean number of examined lymph nodes after 2007 was significantly higher (42.3) than before (35.8) (p = 0.024). The higher number concerned mostly lymph nodes in level V. The mean number of positive lymph nodes before 2007 was 3.3 vs. 3.6 after 2007 (p = 0.745). By multivariate analysis of both pre- and post-2007 cohort data, two factors remained associated with an increased hazard of dying: N2 [HR 2.1 (1.1-4.1) and 2.4 (1.0-5.8)] and >3 positive lymph nodes [HR 2.0 (1.1-3.5) and 3.1 (1.4-6.9)]. Hazard ratio for LNR >7 % was not significantly different: pre 2007 at 2.2 (1.3-3.8) and post 2007 at 2.1 (1.0-4.8, p = 0.053). In this study, changes in specimen processing influenced LNR values, but not the total number of tumor positive nodes found. Therefore, in HNSCC, the number of positive nodes seems a more reliable parameter than LNR, provided a minimum number of lymph nodes are examined.

Indexed as

AdultAgedAged, 80 and overCarcinoma, Squamous CellFemaleHead and Neck NeoplasmsHumansLymphatic MetastasisLymph Node ExcisionLymph NodesMaleMiddle AgedNeoplasm StagingNetherlandsPrognosisRetrospective StudiesHead and neck cancerLymph node metastasesLymph node ratioPrognosisStaging

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Registered trials

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.