Impact of Lymphovascular Invasion on Survival Outcome in Patients With Gastric Cancer.

OBJECTIVES: To evaluate the prognostic significance of lymphovascular invasion (LVI) for patients with gastric cancer (GC). METHODS: A total of 1,720 consecutive patients who underwent curative gastrectomy were retrospectively identified. The association between LVI and clinicopathologic characteristics was determined and its impact on survival outcome was evaluated. RESULTS: LVI was detected in 21.3% of GC patients, 5.9% of patients with early GC, 24.0% of patients with advanced GC, and 6.7% of node-negative patients using H&E staining. Tumor size (odds ratio [OR], 1.509; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.159-1.965; P < .01), differentiated type (OR, 1.817; 95% CI, 1.377-2.398; P < .001), and the depth of tumor invasion (OR, 3.011; 95% CI, 2.174-4.171; P < .001) were independent predictive factors for LVI. LVI-positive patients have a poorer prognosis than LVI-negative patients, irrespective of tumor stage or lymph node metastasis. LVI was an independent prognostic factor for patients with GC (hazard ratio, 1.299; 95% CI, 1.112-1.518; P < .001). CONCLUSIONS: LVI provided additional prognostic information for GC patients, and LVI-positive patients should be considered candidates for adjuvant chemotherapy.