An alternative way to measure the depth of invasion of vulvar squamous cell carcinoma in relation to prognosis

Contains fulltext : 153955.pdf (Publisher’s version ) (Closed access) Depth of invasion is an important prognostic factor for patients with vulvar squamous cell carcinoma. The aim of this study was to identify the most optimal method of measuring the depth of invasion in relation to the individual outcome in patients with vulvar squamous cell carcinoma. Data of 175 consecutive patients with a primary vulvar squamous cell carcinoma with known lymph node status, treated in the Radboud University Medical Center, the Netherlands (2000-2010), were stored in a database. At pathology review of 148 (85%) cases, depth of invasion was measured using the conventional and alternative methods. Clinical and pathological characteristics of patients with a change in FIGO stage were compared with those without a change in stage. In 148 vulvar squamous cell carcinoma patients, the median depth of invasion was shown to be decreased from 5.5 mm (range 1.1-20) using the conventional method to 3.6 mm (range 0.2-20) using the alternative method (P