The significance of tumor size in clinical stage IB cervical cancer: Can acut-off figure be determined?

The purpose of this study was to investigate the influence of tumor size on pathologic variables and the prognosis of patients diagnosed as clinical s tage IF cervical cancer. Five hundred sixty six patients with clinical stag e IB cervical cancer treated surgically at the Aichi Cancer Center between 1976 and 1995 were studied. The incidence of pathologic variables that incr eased as tumors enlarged was unchanged beyond 4.0 cm. Although univariate a nalysis revealed that the prognosis worsened as a tumor enlarged, there was no significant difference in prognoses between 3.1-4.0 cm and 4.1-5.0 cm t umors. While multivariate analysis showed tumor size as an independent prog nostic variable, there was no difference between the odd ratios of 3.1-4.0 cm and 4.1-5.0 cm tumors. Tumor size was an independently significant risk factor for the prognosis of clinical stage IB cervical cancer. While the de finition of 4.0 cm as a cut-off point was useful as far as determining; an association with pathologic variables, it may be an insufficient indicator of poor prognosis. The "bulky" tumors should be defined as clinical lesions greater than 5.0 cm, though few patients would have tumors that meet that criterion.