How Does the Close Surgical Margin Impact Recurrence and Survival When Treating XXXX ?

@entity1 @entity957 @entity797
PURPOSE: The surgical margin is the main prognostic factor over which the surgeon has control during resection of @entity957 ( @entity957 ). This study examined the association between surgical excision margins of @entity1 with @entity957 and outcomes of disease-free and overall survival. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The authors implemented a retrospective cohort study. The sample was composed of @entity1 with @entity957 having resection as their initial treatment. The predictor variable was the pathologic surgical margin, defined as clear (>5  mm), close (1 to 5  mm), or involved (<1  mm). The outcome variables were disease-free (absence of locoregional recurrence) and overall survival. Data were analyzed using Kaplan-Meier survival curves and @entity797 regression hazard model. RESULTS: The sample was composed of 54 @entity1 with a mean age of 60.5  years (range, 19 to 85  yr) and 26% were @entity1 . The 2- and 5-year overall survival rates were 59 and 50%, respectively. The clear surgical margin group showed higher disease-free survival rates than @entity1 with close and involved margins (5-yr probability, 0.78 vs 0.43 and 0.29; P  = .014) and a trend toward increased overall survival at 2 and 5  years (P  = .093). CONCLUSION: The results suggest that the presence of a close surgical margin (1 to 5  mm) is an adverse risk feature comparable to an involved margin and therefore is associated with decreased disease-free and overall survival. Future studies are needed to replicate these findings before they can be used as a basis for clinical recommendations.
