The Impact of Lymphovascular Space Invasion on Recurrence and Survival in Iranian Patients With Early Stage Endometrial Cancer

BACKGROUND: The aim of this study was to assess the impact of lymphovascular space involvement (LVSI) on recurrence and survival in early stage of endometrial cancer (EC). METHODS: Patients with EC referred to Imam Khomeini Hospital in Tehran were examined and enrolled over a 10-year period (2004 - 2015). The effect of LVSI on recurrence and overall survival was analyzed using the Kaplan-Meier and log-rank test methods. RESULTS: A total of 160 patients with early stage EC were identified. Out of 160 women with EC, 135 (84.4%) underwent primary surgery. One hundred and twenty-one (76.2%) patients were not found to have LVSI, whereas 38 (23.8%) were found to have LVSI. Of the 38 patients with LVSI, 21 (55.3%) had endometrioid cell type tumor, 10 (26.3%) had serous, one (2.6%) had clear cell and six (15.8%) had adeno-squamous cell type tumor. CONCLUSION: The presence of LVSI represents a factor strongly associated with high risk of recurrence and poor survival in early stage EC. Patients with lower International Federation of Obstetrics and Gynecology (FIGO) stages may be at increased risk of recurrence and a poor overall survival if the pathological findings confirm the presence of LVSI. Thus, LVSI should be added to the traditional factors used to decide whether patients with early stage EC are at high risk of recurrence and adjuvant therapy planning.