BLOOD-TRANSFUSION AND THE RISK OF RECURRENCE IN SQUAMOUS CARCINOMA OFTHE VULVA

OBJECTIVE: Our purpose was to determine if postoperative transfusion i ncreases the risk of recurrence in patients who have undergone operati on for squamous carcinoma of the vulva. STUDY DESIGN: Data from 154 pa tients with squamous carcinoma of the vulva treated at Indiana Univers ity Medical Center from 1974 through 1988 were retrospectively analyze d to determine the influence of postoperative transfusion on recurrenc e risk. Patients were evaluated for International Federation of Gyneco logy and Obstetrics stage, lesion size, lesion depth, grade, patient a ge, number of transfusions, and recurrence with chi2 analysis, Fisher' s exact test. and the Student t test where appropriate. RESULTS: Trans fusions were given to 57 patients (37%) with a mean of 2.2 units deliv ered (range 1 to 5 units). Transfused patients differed significantly from those not transfused in that they had more advanced stage (p = 0. 002), more positive nodes (p = 0.03), and higher grade lesions (p = 0. 03), and they were older (p = 0.005). Recurrences developed in 25 pati ents (16.2%). Recurrences were more common in those with positive node s (10-39, 25.6%) than in those with negative nodes (8/99, 8%), (p = 0. 01). Only nodal status was predictive of recurrence in this series. Tr ansfused patients had a 14% (8/57) rate of recurrence, whereas the rec urrence risk was 17.5% (17/97) in those not transfused (p = 0.65). CON CLUSIONS: We have been unable to confirm that postoperative transfusio ns increase the risk of recurrence in patients with squamous carcinoma of the vulva.