L. Mariani et al., RADIOTHERAPY FOR VULVAR CARCINOMA WITH POSITIVE INGUINAL NODES - ADJUNCTIVE TREATMENT, Journal of reproductive medicine, 38(6), 1993, pp. 429-436
Between 1981 and 1988, 58 patients with vulvar carcinoma underwent rad
ical vulvectomy and unilateral inguinal lymphadenectomy. Sixteen patie
nts with inguinal node metastases received complementary radiotherapy
as an alternative to pelvic node dissection. They were treated with Co
-60 therapy for bilateral inguinal and pelvic lymph nodes. The overall
five-year actuarial survival rate in patients without node involvemen
t was 84%; in patients with positive inguinal nodes treated with the c
ombined radiosurgical approach, it was 64%. Patients with 1 node invol
ved had a 74% rate of estimated survival, and those with 2 or more met
astatic nodes, considered to be at high risk, had an estimated surviva
l rate of 49%. Only mild to moderate side effects related to the radia
tion therapy were observed, and in no case was it necessary to interru
pt the treatment. In terms of survival, the results obtained in the gr
oup of patients with postoperative radiotherapy were better than those
normally expected after pelvic lymphadenectomy, and as suggested in r
ecent literature, point to the promising role of irradiation as adjuva
nt management for vulvar cancer with node involvement.