Lymph node yield following XXXX surgery.

@entity1 @entity14
BACKGROUND: Lymph node yield (LNY) is a measure of quality of care and a strong prognostic factor for outcome from @entity14 ( @entity14 ). The main aims of this study were to determine LNY across multiple Australian centres and the clinico-pathologic factors that influence yield. METHODS: Analysis of data from prospective @entity14 databases at 11 Australian centres between January 1988 and May 2008 was undertaken utilizing the linkage and analysis resources of BioGrid Australia. The LNY depending on different clinico-pathologic @entity1 characteristics was evaluated. RESULTS: In total, 10,082 cases (54.1% @entity1 , 45.9% @entity1 ) were identified. Median LNY was 12 (range 0-174). LNY increased significantly (P < 0.001) over time, from a mean of 8.5 in 1988 to 13 in 2008. LNY also varied significantly between surgical centres. Female gender, younger age, right-sided disease, higher T and N stage, specific operation types and absence of preoperative radiotherapy were all significantly associated with higher LNY. CONCLUSIONS: While varying across centres, the median LNYs in Australia are acceptable and have improved significantly over recent years. Multiple clinico-pathologic factors significantly influence the number of nodes retrieved.
