Therapeutic strategy for signet ring cell carcinoma of the stomach

The effect of surgery and metastatic risk prediction in patients with gastrointestinal tract signet-ring cell carcinoma

PURPOSE

This study aimed to assess the efficacy of surgery as a treatment option for patients with signet-ring cell carcinoma (SRCC) in the gastrointestinal tract (GI-SRCC).

METHODS

Using the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results database, patients with GI-SRCC who underwent surgery or received nonsurgical treatment were included. Propensity score matching (PSM) analysis was used to balance baseline characteristics and reduce bias. Overall survival (OS) was calculated in matching cohorts to estimate prognosis for patients with GI-SRCC. Nomogram was established to predict metastasis for patients with GI-SRCC.

RESULTS

The study enrolled a total of 9428 patients with GI-SRCC, with 1689 patients in the nonsurgery group and 7739 patients in the surgery group. After 1:1 PSM, we analyzed 743 patients from each group. Our survival analyses revealed that surgery independently correlated with improved OS for patients with GI-SRCC (hazard ratio, 0.37; 95% CI, 0.33-0.42; P < .001). Subgroup analysis further confirmed the positive impact of surgery on the prognosis of patients with nonmetastatic GI-SRCC. Notably, distinct subsets of patients with metastasis, particularly those originating from the upper GI (esophagus, proximal stomach, and distal stomach) and left colon, demonstrated a significant improvement in OS after surgery. However, no significant survival difference was observed for patients with metastatic right colon and rectum SRCC. Using nomogram, we quantitatively assessed the risk of metastasis in patients with right colon and rectum SRCC, which exhibited robust predictive accuracy, with area under the curve values of 0.829.

CONCLUSION

Our study highlighted surgery's positive impact on prognosis for both patients with nonmetastatic and metastatic upper GI-SRCC and left colon SRCC. Hence, we recommend surgery as a treatment option for these groups. In addition, for patients with metastatic right colon and rectum SRCC ineligible for surgery, our predictive nomogram can offer a convenient tool to aid early intervention and improve prognosis.

Is neoadjuvant chemotherapy followed by surgery the appropriate treatment for esophagogastric signet ring cell carcinomas? A systematic review and meta-analysis

Background

The impact of neoadjuvant chemotherapy (nCTX) on survival and tumor response in patients with esophagogastric signet ring cell carcinoma (SRCC) is still controversial.

Methods

Two independent reviewers performed a systematic literature search in Medline, CENTRAL, and Web of Science including prospective and retrospective two-arm non-randomized and randomized controlled studies (RCTs). Data was extracted on overall survival (OS) and tumor regression in resected esophagogastric SRCC patients with or without nCTX. Survival data was analyzed using published hazard ratios (HR) if available or determined it from other survival data or survival curves. OS and histopathological response rates by type of tumor (SRCC vs. non-SRCC) were also investigated.

Results

Out of 559 studies, ten (1 RCT, 9 non-RCTs) were included in this meta-analysis (PROSPERO CRD42022298743) investigating 3,653 patients in total. The four studies investigating survival in SRCC patients treated with nCTX + surgery vs. surgery alone showed no survival benefit for neither intervention, but heterogeneity was considerable (HR, 1.01; 95% CI, 0.61-1.67; p = 0.98; I2 = 89%). In patients treated by nCTX + surgery SRCC patients showed worse survival (HR, 1.45; 95% CI, 1.21-1.74; p < 0.01) and lower rate of major histopathological response than non-SRCC patients (OR, 2.47; 95% CI, 1.78-3.44; p < 0.01).

Conclusion

The current meta-analysis could not demonstrate beneficial effects of nCTX for SRCC patients. Histopathological response to and survival benefits of non-taxane-based nCTX seem to be lower in comparison to non-SRC esophagogastric cancer. However, certainty of evidence is low due to the scarcity of high-quality trials. Further research is necessary to determine optimal treatment for SRCC patients.

Systematic Review Registration

https://www.crd.york.ac.uk/, PROSPERO (CRD42022298743).

Normalization weighted combination scores re-evaluate TNM staging of gastric cancer: a retrospective cohort study based on a multicenter database

BACKGROUND

The pathological depth of tumor invasion (pT) and lymph node metastasis (pN) are critical independent prognostic factors for patients with gastric cancer (GC), representing effective methods for evaluating prognosis. In this study, the authors employed a normalization weight combination score to calculate the weight ratio of the pT stage and pN stage. Subsequently, the authors established a novel weighted TN (wTN) staging model based on these T and N weights, evaluating its prognostic capacity.

METHODS

This study utilized a training cohort from A Medical University Cancer Hospital and a validation cohort from the SEER database. Least absolute shrinkage and selection operator (LASSO) and Cox regression were employed to screen clinical characteristics. Multivariate linear regression and cluster analysis calculated the weight ratio of T stage and N stage in the training and validation cohorts, respectively, followed by re-staging. Prognostic value was evaluated using C-index, likelihood ratio, Wald, and Score tests for wTN stage and tumor-node-metastasis (TNM) stage. A nomogram model was developed, and accuracy was assessed using receiver operating characteristic curve (ROC), decision curve analysis (DCA), and restricted cubic spline (RCS) analyses.

RESULTS

LASSO was used for initial screening, selecting eight potential features for Cox analysis. Age, tumor size, metastasis lymph nodes (MLNs), and tumor location were confirmed as independent prognostic factors. wTN was calculated in the training and validation cohorts, and nomograms were established with the independent factors. N stage had a higher weight proportion than T stage in both cohorts (0.625/0.375 in training cohort, 0.556/0.444 in validation cohort). wTN outperformed the 8th TNM stage in C-index, likelihood ratio, Wald, and Score tests in the training cohort, with successful validation in the validation cohort. Stratified analysis of distinct pathological types further demonstrates that wTN staging exhibits superior prognostic performance.

CONCLUSION

The wTN staging model based on T stage and N stage weights has a good prognostic value for GC patients. The same conclusion was obtained in different pathological stratification.

The percentages of signet-ring cells (SRCs) affects the prognosis after radical gastrectomy for advanced gastric cancer

PURPOSE

Only recently has the percentage of signet-ring cells (SRCs) been shown to affect the prognosis following gastric cancer surgery. It is uncertain whether the SRC percentage has a role in tumour biology or prognosis of gastric signet-ring cell carcinoma (GSRCC). For this research, we assessed the effect of the SRC percentage on the clinicopathological and prognostic characteristics of gastric cancer (GC) tumours and created and verified a prognostic nomogram to assess the overall survival (OS) of GSRCC patients.

METHODS

In our study, 1100 GC patients with signet-ring cell carcinoma (SRCC) at Zhejiang Cancer Hospital from December 2013 to December 2018 who underwent curative gastric cancer resection were retrospectively analysed. The patients were separated into two groups: those with SRCC (SRC percentage >50%; n = 157) and those with partial signet-ring cell carcinoma (PSRCC) (SRC percentage ≤50%; n = 943). We compared the clinicopathological characteristics of both groups. To estimate OS and determine correlations with the SRC percentage, the Kaplan-Meier method and log-rank test were used. To develop the prognostic nomogram, independent prognostic indicators for OS were identified using Cox regression analyses. Predictions were assessed using the calibration curve and C-index.

RESULTS

Our research showed that there was no discernible difference in OS between the two groups. The preoperative CA242 level, pT stage, pN stage, age, nerve invasion, neoadjuvant chemotherapy, postoperative chemotherapy, and maximum tumour diameter were independent prognostic risk factors for OS for GC (all p < 0.05). However, for advanced GC, the SRC percentage (HR = 1.571, 95% CI 1.072-2.302, p = 0.020) was an independent prognostic factor of OS. Other independent prognostic risk factors were age, pT stage, pN stage, nerve invasion, tumour location, neoadjuvant chemotherapy, postoperative chemotherapy, preoperative CA50 level, and preoperative CEA level (all p < 0.05). On these bases, nomograms were constructed for GC and advanced GC, with C-indexes of 0.806 (95%CI 0.782-0.830) and 0.728 (95%CI 0.697-0.759), respectively.

CONCLUSIONS

In cases of advanced gastric cancer, the SRC percentage served as a standalone prognostic indicator for OS. An effective tool for assessing the prognosis of GSRCC was offered by the nomogram.

Prediction of lymph node metastasis in early gastric signet-ring cell carcinoma: A real-world retrospective cohort study

BACKGROUND

Signet-ring cell carcinoma (SRCC) was previously thought to have a worse prognosis than other differentiated gastric cancer (GC), however, recent studies have shown that the prognosis of SRCC is related to pathological type. We hypothesize that patients with SRCC and with different SRCC pathological components have different probability of lymph node metastasis (LNM).

AIM

To establish models to predict LNM in early GC (EGC), including early gastric SRCC.

METHODS

Clinical data from EGC patients who had undergone gastrectomy at the First Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing Medical University from January 2012 to March 2022 were reviewed. The patients were divided into three groups based on type: Pure SRCC, mixed SRCC, and non-signet ring cell carcinoma (NSRC). The risk factors were identified through statistical tests using SPSS 23.0, R, and Em-powerStats software.

RESULTS

A total of 1922 subjects with EGC were enrolled in this study, and included 249 SRCC patients and 1673 NSRC patients, while 278 of the patients (14.46%) presented with LNM. Multivariable analysis showed that gender, tumor size, depth of invasion, lymphovascular invasion, ulceration, and histological subtype were independent risk factors for LNM in EGC. Establishment and analysis using prediction models of EGC showed that the artificial neural network model was better than the logistic regression model in terms of sensitivity and accuracy (98.0% vs 58.1%, P = 0.034; 88.4% vs 86.8%, P < 0.001, respectively). Among the 249 SRCC patients, LNM was more common in mixed (35.06%) rather than in pure SRCC (8.42%, P < 0.001). The area under the ROC curve of the logistic regression model for LNM in SRCC was 0.760 (95%CI: 0.682-0.843), while the area under the operating characteristic curve of the internal validation set was 0.734 (95%CI: 0.643-0.826). The subgroups analysis of pure types showed that LNM was more common in patients with a tumor size > 2 cm (OR = 5.422, P = 0.038).

CONCLUSION

A validated prediction model was developed to recognize the risk of LNM in EGC and early gastric SRCC, which can aid in pre-surgical decision making of the best method of treatment for patients.

Prognostic Performance of Three Lymph-Node Staging Systems on Gastric Signet-Ring-Cell Carcinoma

BACKGROUND

The lymph-node staging system can predict the prognosis of gastric signet-ring-cell carcinoma (SRCC). However, there are significant differences in lymph-node status between early SRCC and advanced SRCC. Additionally, the optimal system for early and advanced SRCC remains unknown.

METHODS

This study retrospectively analyzed 693 SRCC patients who underwent radical resection in the Department of Gastrointestinal Surgery, Harbin Medical University Cancer Hospital. The predicted performance of three lymph-node staging systems, including pN staging, lymph-node metastasis rate (LNR), and log odds of positive lymph nodes (LODDS), was compared using the receiver characteristic operating curve (ROC) and c-index. The Kaplan-Meier method and the log-rank test analyzed the overall survival of patients. The Cox risk regression model identified independent risk factors associated with patient outcomes. The nomogram was made by R studio.

RESULTS

The 693 SRCC included 165 early SRCC and 528 advanced SRCC. ROC showed that LODDS had better predictive performance than pN and LNR in predicting prognosis regardless of early or advanced SRCC. LODDS can be used to predict the prognosis of early and advanced SRCC and was an independent risk factor associated with patient outcomes (p = 0.002, p < 0.001). Furthermore, the nomogram constructed by LODDS and clinicopathological features had good predictive performance.

CONCLUSIONS

LODDS showed clear prognostic superiority over both pN and LNR in early and advanced SRCC.

Poorly cohesive cells gastric carcinoma including signet-ring cell cancer: Updated review of definition, classification and therapeutic management

While the incidence of gastric cancer (GC) in general has decreased worldwide in recent decades, the incidence of diffuse cancer historically comprising poorly cohesive cells-GC (PCC-GC) and including signet ring cell cancer is rising. Literature concerning PCC-GC is scarce and unclear, mostly due to a large variety of historically used definitions and classifications. Compared to other histological subtypes of GC, PCC-GC is nevertheless characterized by a distinct set of epidemiological, histological and clinical features which require a specific diagnostic and therapeutic approach. The aim of this review was to provide an update on the definition, classification and therapeutic strategies of PCC-GC. We focus on the updated histological definition of PCC-GC, along with its implications on future treatment strategies and study design. Also, specific considerations in the diagnostic management are discussed. Finally, the impact of some recent developments in the therapeutic management of GC in general such as the recently validated taxane-based regimens (5-Fluorouracil, leucovorin, oxaliplatin and docetaxel), the use of hyperthermic intraperitoneal chemotherapy as well as pressurized intraperitoneal aerosol chemotherapy and targeted therapy have been reviewed in depth for their relative importance for PCC-GC in particular.

Clinicopathological Features and Prognostic-Related Risk Factors of Gastric Signet Ring Cell Carcinoma: A Meta-Analysis

Background

Gastric signet ring cell carcinoma (SRCC) has shown a growth growing trend worldwide, but its clinicopathological features and prognostic-related risk factors have not been systematically studied. This systematic review was devoted to this.

Method

PubMed, Embase, Cochrane Library, and Web of Science databases were retrieved, and retrospective cohort studies comparing clinicopathological features and related risk factors in SRCC patients were included.

Results

In SRCC patient population, males were more than females (male, OR = 1.38, 95% CI: 1.20-1.60); N3 patients were more than N0-2 patients (N0-2, OR = 3.19, 95% CI: 1.98-5.15); M1 patients were more than M0 patients (M0, OR = 3.30, 95% CI: 1.88-5.80); patients with tumor > 5 cm were more than those with tumor (≤5 cm, OR = 7.36, 95% CI: 1.33-40.60). Patients with age < 60 years (age ≥ 60 years, OR = 1.03, 95% CI: 1.01-1.05), lymphatic vessel invasion (no, OR = 1.74, 95% CI: 1.03-2.45), T2 (T1, OR = 1.17, 95% CI: 1.07-1.28) and T4 (T1, OR = 2.55, 95% CI: 2.30-2.81) stages, and N1 (N0, OR = 1.73, 95% CI: 1.08-2.38), N2 (N0, OR = 2.24, 95% CI: 1.12-3.36), and N3 (N0, OR = 3.45, 95% CI: 1.58-5.32) stages had higher hazard ratio (HR).

Conclusion

SRCC may occur frequently in male. Age, lymphatic vessel invasion, TN, and M stage may be risk factors for poor prognoses of SRCC patients.

Comparison between signet-ring cell carcinoma and non-signet-ring cell carcinoma of the stomach: clinicopathological parameters, epidemiological data, outcome, and prognosis-a cohort study of 123 patients from a non-endemic country

Background

Signet-ring cell carcinoma of the stomach (SRCC) is a particular gastric cancer entity. Its incidence is increasing. Its diagnosis is pathological; it corresponds to adenocarcinoma with a majority of signet-ring cells component (> 50%).

These histological features give it its aggressiveness characteristics. This has repercussions on the prognostic level and implications for the alternatives of therapy, especially since some authors suggest a potential chemoresistance.

This survey aimed to identify the epidemiological, pathological, therapeutic, and prognostic characteristics of SRCC as a separate disease entity.

Methods

This was a retrospective study of 123 patients admitted for gastric adenocarcinoma to Habib Thameur Hospital in Tunis over 11 years from January 2006 to December 2016. A comparative study was performed between 2 groups: the SRCC group with 62 patients and the non-SRCC (non-signet-ring cell carcinoma of the stomach) with 61 patients.

Results

The prevalence of SRCC in our series was 50%. SRCC affected significantly younger patients (55 vs 62 years; p = 0.004). The infiltrative character was more common in SRCC tumors (30.6 vs 14.8%; p = 0.060), whereas the budding character was more often noted in non-SRCC tumors (78.7 vs 58.1%; p = 0.039). There was no significant difference in tumor localization between both groups. Linitis plastica was noted in 14 patients with SRCC against a single patient with non-SRCC (p = 0.001). The tumor size was more important in the non-SRCC group (6.84 vs 6.39 cm; p = 0.551). Peritoneal carcinomatosis was noted in 4.3% of cases in the SRCC group versus 2.2% of cases in the NSRCC group (p = 0.570). Total gastrectomy was more often performed in the SRCC group (87 vs 56%; p = 0.001). Resection was more often curative in the non-SRCC group (84.4 vs 78.3%; p = 0.063). Postoperative chemotherapy was more commonly indicated in the SRCC group (67.4 vs 53.3%; p = 0.339). Tumor recurrence was more common in the non-SRCC group (35.7 vs 32%; p = 0.776). The most common type of recurrence was peritoneal carcinomatosis in the SRCC group (62.5%) and hepatic metastasis in the non-SRCC group (60%; p = 0.096). The overall 5-year survival in the SRCC group was lower than in the non-SRCC group, with no statistically significant difference (47.1 vs 51.5%; p = 0.715). The overall survival was more important for SRCC in early cancer (100 vs 80%; p = 0.408), whereas it was higher for non-SRCC in advanced cancer (48.1 vs 41.9%; p = 0.635).

Conclusion

Apart from its epidemiological and pathological features, SRCC seems to have a worse prognosis. Indeed, it is diagnosed at a more advanced stage and has a worse prognosis in advanced cancer than non-SRCC. It is therefore to be considered as a particular entity of gastric adenocarcinoma requiring a specific therapeutic protocol where the place of chemotherapy remains to be more investigated.

Endoscopic submucosal dissection for early signet ring cell gastric cancer: A systematic review and meta-analysis

BACKGROUND

The use of endoscopic submucosal dissection (ESD) for treating early signet ring cell carcinoma (SRC) is controversial due to the risk of lymph node metastasis.

AIM

To carry out a meta-analysis to evaluate ESD for therapeutic efficacy and safety in early signet ring cell gastric cancer.

METHODS

The PubMed, Web of Science, Cochrane Library, and EMBASE databases were used to search for relevant studies evaluating the therapeutic efficacy and safety of ESD in SRC. The rates of recurrence, complete resection, incomplete resection, curative resection, en bloc resection, and adverse events were extracted and analyzed. The methodological quality of the enrolled studies was assessed using the Newcastle-Ottawa Scale. Publication bias was evaluated by the Egger’s test. Institutional review board approval and written consent were not needed for this report.

RESULTS

This meta-analysis enrolled seven studies with 653 participants undergoing ESD treatment for early SRC. The overall recurrence rate was 0.010 [95% confidence interval (CI): 0.000-0.040, Z = 1.422, P = 0.155]. The total lymphovascular invasion rate was 0.038 (95%CI: 0.007-0.088, Z = 3.026, P = 0.002). The total en bloc resection rate was estimated at 0.984 (95%CI: 0.925-1.000, Z = 19.463, P = 0.000). The total complete and incomplete resection rates were estimated at 0.785 (95%CI: 0.596-0.928, Z = 9.789, P = 0.000) and 0.188 (95%CI: 0.016-0.468, Z = 2.531, P = 0.011), respectively. The total procedure-associated gastric hemorrhage and perforation rates were estimated at 0.026 (95%CI: 0.005-0.061, Z = 3.006 P = 0.003) and 0.004 (95%CI: 0.000-0.028, Z = 0.938, P = 0.348), respectively. The curative resection, vertical margin invasion, and lateral margin invasion rates were 72.1% (145/341), 2.3% (8/348), and 34.45% (41/119), respectively.

CONCLUSION

ESD constitutes a promising therapeutic approach for early undifferentiated SRC gastric cancer. However, further improvements are required for increasing its treatment efficacy and reducing adverse outcomes.

Gastric Xanthoma Is Related to the Rapid Growth of Gastric Cancer

Early detection of gastric cancer is important. However, rapid growth of gastric cancers that cannot be resected endoscopically occurs even with periodic check-ups. Accordingly, we assessed factors associated with the speed of gastric cancer growth by examining historical endoscopic images. A total of 1996 gastric cancer cases were screened, and characteristics of lesions with slow and rapid growth were assessed. A total of 114 lesions from 114 patients were included in the assessment. Sixty slow-growing and fifty-four rapidly growing gastric cancers were compared. Female sex and incidence of lesions in the lower part of the stomach were significantly less frequent in the rapid-growth group than in the slow-growth group. History of endoscopic treatment tended to be more frequent in the rapid-growth group. Age, body mass index, histology, Helicobacter pylori status, and medications did not differ significantly between groups. Xanthoma was significantly related to rapid growth of gastric cancer, and map-like redness tended to be more frequent in the rapid-growth group in univariate analysis. Xanthoma was significantly related to rapid growth of gastric cancer on multivariate analysis. Further studies are warranted to clarify the pathophysiological mechanisms involved in the speed of gastric cancer growth.

Cytoreductive Surgery for Peritoneal Carcinomatosis from Gastric Cancer: Technical Details

Due to limited systemic treatment options, peritoneal carcinomatosis of gastric origin is still associated with a dismal outcome and is claimed a terminal disease. In the past, surgery had not been considered as a potential treatment option. However, there is emerging evidence that in selected patients, locoregional treatment modalities including cytoreductive surgery of peritoneal carcinomatosis can improve survival in patients with gastric cancer. These operative procedures are complex and challenging, and a high surgical expertise of the treating physician is necessary to prevent major postoperative morbidity and mortality with a delay of further systemic therapy. This review summarizes our current knowledge and personal experience regarding the techniques of cytoreductive surgery for peritoneal metastasis of gastric origin.

Clinical Features and Risk Factors for Lymph Node Metastasis in Early Signet Ring Cell Gastric Cancer

Signet ring cell carcinoma (SRCC) was previously thought to have a worse prognosis than differentiated gastric carcinoma (DC). However, recent studies have shown that its prognosis is related to staging. Here, we analyzed the clinicopathological features and the rate of lymph node metastasis (LNM) in 2166 patients with gastric cancer (605 early and 1561 advanced cases) who underwent gastrectomy and lymph node dissection (D2) from 2016 to 2019. The LNM rate for early and advanced cases was 18.0% and 74.2%, respectively. Regarding early cases, the LNM rate in SRCC was similar to that in DC (10% vs. 16.1%, p=0.224), and significantly lower than that in undifferentiated carcinoma (UDC; 10% vs. 23.3%, p=0.024). Tumor size, infiltration depth, pathological type, and mixed type were risk factors for LNM in early cases. Regarding intramucosal cases, the LNM rate in SRCC was similar to that in DC (4.3% vs. 3.7%, p=0.852), and significantly lower than that in UDC (11.2%). The LNM rate was significantly higher in submucosal than intramucosal cases (28.1% vs. 6.3%, p<0.001), and in early mixed cases than early pure cases (23.2% vs. 12.4%, p<0.001). Regarding early pure cases, the LNM rate in SRCC was similar to that in DC (9.3% vs. 7.2%, p=0.641), but significantly lower than that in UDC (9.3% vs. 24.7%, p=0.039). In summary, the LNM rate in early SRCC was similar to that in early DC but significantly lower than that in early UDC. Early SRCC fits with the endoscopic submucosal dissection (ESD) indication related to undifferentiated cases, and ESD may be effective. Additionally, the LNM rate was markedly higher for submucosal cases than intramucosal cases, and for mixed cases than pure cases.

Prognosis and Biological Behavior of Gastric Signet-Ring Cell Carcinoma Better or Worse: A Meta-Analysis

BACKGROUND

The clinical pathology of gastric signet-ring cell carcinoma (SRC) is still unclear. This meta-analysis was performed to evaluate the difference in biological behavior and prognosis between SRC and non-signet ring cell carcinoma (NSRC).

METHODS

A total of 58 eligible studies were analyzed using RevMan and other auxiliary software. Biological behaviors were compared based on odds ratio (OR) and mean difference (MD). Hazards ratio (HR) was calculated for prognosis based on Kaplan-Meier curves.

RESULTS

Totally, 28,946 SRC patients were compared with 81,917 NSRC patients. Compared with NSRC patients, lower male: female ratio (OR = 0.53, P < 0.01), younger age (MD = -4.89, P < 0.01), more middle location (OR = 1.64, P < 0.01), more depressed type at early stage (OR = 1.31, P < 0.05), higher incidence of Borrmann type IV (OR = 1.96, P < 0.01), less lymph node metastasis at early stage (OR = 0.78, P < 0.05), better prognosis at early stage (HR = 0.59, P < 0.01), and worse prognosis at advanced stage (HR = 1.19, P < 0.01) were associated with SRC patients.

CONCLUSION

The prognosis of SRC at early stage is better than other types of gastric cancer, while that of SRC at advanced stage is relatively poorer.

Difference Between Signet Ring Cell Gastric Cancers and Non-Signet Ring Cell Gastric Cancers: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Background: There is controversy about the characteristics and prognostic implications of signet ring cell gastric cancers and non-signet ring cell gastric cancers.

Objective: This study aims to evaluate clinicopathological characteristics and prognoses of signet ring cell carcinoma (SRCC) and non-signet ring cell carcinoma (NSRCC) of stomach.

Methods: Studies compared between SRCC and NSRCC of the stomach after gastrectomy and published before September 1st, 2020, in the PubMed, Cochrane, and Embase databases, were identified systematically.

Results: A total of 2,865 studies were screened, and 36 studies were included, with 19,174 patients in the SRCC group and 55,942 patients in the NSRCC group. SRCC patients were younger in age (P < 0.001), less likely to be male patients (P < 0.001), more afflicted with upper third lesions (P < 0.001), and presenting with more Borrmann type IV tumors (P = 0.005) than NSRCC patients. Lymph nodes metastasis was similar between SRCC and NSRCC patients with advanced tumor stage (OR: 0.86, 95% CI: 0.671.10, P = 0.23), but lower in the SRCC than NSRCC patients with early tumor stage (OR: 0.73; 95% CI: 0.560.98, P = 0.02). SRCC patients had comparable survival outcomes with NSRCC patients for early gastric cancers (HR: 1.05, 95% CI: 0.651.68, P < 0.001) but had significantly poor prognosis for patients with advanced tumor stage (HR: 1.50, 95% CI: 1.281.76, P < 0.001).

Conclusions: Signet ring cell carcinomas of the stomach are an increasingly common histopathological subtype of gastric cancers. These kinds of patients tend to be younger in age and more often female. Although, signet ring cell gastric cancer is a negative prognostic factor for patients with advanced stage. The difference is that for early stage of signet ring cell gastric cancers, it has low lymph nodes metastasis rate and comparable prognosis with non-signet ring cell cancers.

Advances in the surgical management of gastric and gastroesophageal junction cancer

Since Theodore Billroth and Cesar Roux perfected the methods of post-gastrectomy reconstruction in the late 19^th century, surgical management of gastric and gastroesophageal cancer has made incremental progress. The majority of patients with localized disease are treated with perioperative combination chemotherapy or neoadjuvant chemoradiation. Staging laparoscopy before initiation of treatment or before surgical resection has improved staging accuracy and can drastically inform treatment decisions. The longstanding and contentious debate on the optimal extent of lymph node dissection for gastric cancer appears to have settled in favor of D2 dissection with the recently published 15-year follow-up of the Dutch randomized trial. Minimally invasive gastric and gastroesophageal resections are performed routinely in most centers affording faster recovery and equivalent oncologic outcomes. Pylorus-preserving distal (central) gastrectomy has emerged as a less invasive, function-preserving option for T1N0 middle-third gastric cancers, while randomized data on its oncologic adequacy are pending. Multi-visceral resections and cytoreductive surgery with hyperthermic intraperitoneal chemotherapy has been utilized selectively for patients with locally advanced tumors who have demonstrated disease control on preoperative chemotherapy. This review summarizes the current standard of surgical care for gastroesophageal junction and gastric cancer as well as highlights recent and upcoming advances to the field.

Treatment at an Academic Cancer Center Confers Better Survival by Stage for Signet-Ring Cell and Non-signet-Ring Cell Gastric Cancer

BACKGROUND

The literature lacks large-scale population studies comparing survival outcomes between signet-ring cell gastric carcinoma (SRGC) and non-SRGC (NSRGC) when treatment is delivered at academic versus community cancer centers.

METHODS

The National Cancer Database (NCDB) from 2004 to 2016 was queried to examine the association between treatment facility category and overall survival of patients who underwent gastrectomy for resectable gastric adenocarcinoma (GAC).

RESULTS

The study investigated 22,871 patients. Upstaging of resectable GAC to pathologic stage 4 was more evident at community centers (3.5%) than at academic centers (2.8%) for the NSRGC variant (p = 0.211), whereas it was comparable between the two facility categories for the SRGC variant (5.9% vs 6%, respectively). Patients with pathologic stage 1 or 3 NSRGC who underwent gastrectomy at academic programs had better overall survival (OS) (hazard ratio [HR], 0.68; p < 0.0001) than those who underwent gastrectomy at community centers (HR, 0.79; p < 0.0065). Similarly, patients with stage 2 SRGC had better OS when treated at academic versus community centers (HR, 0.54; p = 0.0019). No statistically significant improvement in OS was observed between patients with stage 2 NSRGC (HR, 0.84; p = 0.083) and those with stage 3 SRGC (HR, 0.78; p = 0.054) who were treated at academic centers. No survival benefit was demonstrated for stage 1 SRGC when academic and community centers were compared (p = 0.56).

CONCLUSIONS

This is the first study based on a large-scale database in the Western population that addressed the overall survival-by-stage of two distinct GAC histologic variants. Treatment at academic centers was associated with significant improvements in OS.

Different clinicopathologic features and prognostic significance of signet ring cell histology in early and locally advanced gastric cancer patients

BACKGROUND

Although many studies have evaluated the prognostic significance of signet ring cell (SRC) histology for gastric cancer (GC) patients, the results were conflicting. The objective of this study was to compare clinicopathologic characteristics between SRC type and other types, and evaluate its impact on survival outcome.

METHODS

We retrospectively reviewed clinicopathologic and survival data of 1891 patients who underwent curative resection for GC. All patients were divided into differentiated, undifferentiated and SRC type according to the histological classification. The prognostic differences between different types were compared and clinicopathologic factors were analyzed.

RESULTS

SRC histology type had a poorer disease-free survival (DFS) than differentiated type (5-year DFS, 37.7% vs 52.2%, P<0.001), but there was no prognostic difference between SRC type and undifferentiated type (37.7% vs 41.9%, P>0.05). For early GC patients, SRC type was more frequent in younger, female patients and T1a stage tumors; the 5-year DFS of SRC type was similar to that of any other histology type (P>0.05). SRC type showed more aggressive biological features, including extensive stomach involvement, large tumor size, advanced pTstage and pN stage, than other types for locally advanced GC patients; poorer DFS was observed in SRC type compared with differentiated type. Multivariate analysis indicated that SRC type (HR:1.71, 95%CI:1.10-1.68, P<0.01) and undifferentiated type (HR:1.21, 95%CI:1.04-1.40, P<0.05) were independently associated with poor DFS in locally advanced GC patients.

CONCLUSION

There was a significant difference between early and locally advanced GC patients with regard to clinicopathologic features and prognostic significance of SRC histology. SRC type was an independent prognostic factor for locally advanced GC patients, but not for early GC patients.

Operable gastric adenocarcinoma with different histological subtypes: Cancer-specific survival in the United States

BACKGROUND/AIMS

Gastric signet ring cell carcinoma (GSRC), a subtype of adenocarcinoma, has been considered a histological type with poor survival. We aimed to compare the survival outcomes between patients with GSRC and patients with gastric non-signet ring cell adenocarcinoma (NGSRC) and constructed a nomogram to predict gastric adenocarcinoma-specific survival (GCSS).

PATIENTS AND METHODS

We identified 10,031 patients with gastric adenocarcinoma (GA) from the surveillance, epidemiology, and end results (SEER) database and stratified them into two histological type groups: GSRC and NGSRC. We used propensity score matching and identified 4304 patients (training cohort) to assess the effect of the histological type on GCSS with Kaplan-Meier curves, and constructed a predictive nomogram. The accuracy of the nomogram was tested on the remaining 5727 patients (validation cohort) with concordance index (C-index) values, calibration curves, and receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis.

RESULTS

We found that the histological type SRC was not associated with significantly poor survival (5-year survival rate: 46.1% vs 46.7%, P = 0.822). GSRC patients had similar GCSS rates compared to those with NGSRC in each tumor, node, and metastasis (TNM) stage (allP > 0.05). The nomogram showed that histological type was a relatively weak predictor of survival. The C-index value of the nomogram for predicting survival was 0.720, similar to that in the validation cohort (0.724).

CONCLUSIONS

Patients with GSRC had a similar prognosis to those with NGSRC. The proposed nomogram allowed a relatively accurate survival prediction for operable GA patients after gastrectomy.

Chemoradiotherapy Is Inferior to Chemotherapy Alone in Adjuvant Setting for Signet Ring Cell Containing Gastric Cancer

Background

Signet ring cell containing gastric cancer (SRCGC) is a rare subtype of gastric cancer, and its adjuvant therapy is based on general gastric cancer. However, the effectiveness of radiotherapy for those SRCGC patients remains unknown.

Purpose

The purpose of the study was to analyze whether the addition of radiotherapy to adjuvant chemotherapy (CT) can benefit survival in resected SRCGC patients.

Methods

Patients with SRCGC, who underwent D2 gastrectomy followed by adjuvant chemotherapy or chemoradiotherapy (CRT), were retrospectively collected. According to the proportion of signet ring cells, patients were histologically classified as pure SRCGC (pSRCGC) containing 100% of signet ring cells, mixed SRCGC (mSRCGC) containing >50% of signet ring cells, and contaminated SRCGC (cSRCGC) containing <50% of signet ring cells. Among the 272 patients, 156 were treated by CT alone and 116 by CRT. The primary endpoint was 3-year overall survival rate (3-year OS rate).

Results

With a median follow-up of 80.5 months, the 3-year OS rate was significantly higher in the CT group (70.5% vs. 58.6%, HR = 0.633, P = 0.017) compared with CRT group. Three independent characteristics were predictive of a poor overall survival: CRT treatment (P = 0.019), tumor size ≥5 cm (P < 0.001), and the presence of vessel invasion (P = 0.009). Subgroup analyses showed CRT significantly impaired prognosis in SRCGC patients in the cSRCGC subset, as well as lesions located in lower-middle sites, subtotal gastrectomy, male, <60 year, and no vessel invasion. Peritoneal was the most common recurrence site in SRCGC patients. The adverse events leukopenia and neutropenia were more common in the CRT group (P = 0.007).

Conclusions

Adjuvant chemoradiotherapy was associated with poor survival compared with adjuvant chemotherapy in SRCGC patients with D2 gastrectomy.

Prognostic analysis of gastric signet ring cell carcinoma and mucinous carcinoma: a propensity score-matched study and competing risk analysis

Background: Limited evidence and contradictory results have been reported regarding the impact of signet ring cell carcinoma (SRC) and mucinous gastric cancer (MGC) classifications on the prognosis of gastric cancer (GC).

Results: Information on 6017 patients and 266 patients was extracted from the SEER database and our hospital records, respectively. We found that patients with MGC had a better survival rate than those with SRC (P=0.012), but in the early stage, MGC was a risk factor for a poor prognosis. After PSM, for both patients from the SEER database and our hospital, the prognosis of patients with SRC was poorer than that of patients with MGC (P<0.05), but patients with MGC in early-stage GC showed poorer survival. Additionally, SRC was demonstrated to be a risk factor in the multivariate competing risk regression model for cancer-specific survival.

Conclusion: Patients with SRC may have a worse prognosis than those with MGC, but for early-stage GC, patients with SRC have a better prognosis than those with MGC.

Method: Patients from the SEER database and from our hospital diagnosed with SRC or MGC were included in a Cox regression analysis, multivariate competing risk model and propensity score matching (PSM) analysis.

Predictors of Lymph Node Metastasis and Differences Between Pure and Mixed Histologic Types of Early Gastric Signet-ring Cell Carcinomas

The aim of this study was to investigate predictors of lymph node metastasis (LNM) in early gastric signet-ring cell carcinoma (SRCC) and determine clinicopathologic and prognostic differences of different histologic subtypes. We retrospectively analyzed 13,661 gastric cancer patients; 231 were eligible for inclusion. Data for clinical, endoscopic, and histopathologic characteristics and prognoses were collected. Patients were followed up regarding postresection survival; overall and disease-specific survival rates were estimated by the Kaplan-Meier method with a log-rank test, and prognostic factors were evaluated by Cox regression. LNM incidence in early SRCC was 16.0% (37/231) overall: 6.9% (8/116) and 25.2% (29/115) in patients with pure and mixed SRCC, respectively. Univariate and multivariate analyses revealed SM2 invasion (odds ratio [OR]=5.070, P=0.003), lymphovascular invasion (LVI) (OR=14.876, P<0.001), pathologic pattern of mixed SRCC (OR=3.226, P=0.026), ulcer presence (OR=3.340, P=0.019) and lesion size over 20 mm (OR=2.823, P=0.015) as independent risk factors for LNM. Compared with pure SRCC, the mixed subtype was associated with older age, larger lesion size, higher LVI frequency, more frequent perineural invasion, and most importantly, higher LNM incidence. Patients with pure SRCC showed significantly longer overall survival (P=0.004) and disease-specific survival (P=0.002) than mixed SRCC patients. Pathologic subtype (hazard ratio [HR]=3.682; P=0.047), age (HR=5.246; P=0.001), SM1 invasion (HR=6.192; P=0.023), SM2 invasion (HR=7.529; P=0.021) and LNM (HR=5.352; P<0.001) were independent prognostic factors. Independent risk factors for LNM in early gastric SRCC were SM2 invasion, LVI, pathologic pattern, ulcer presence and lesion size over 20 mm. Early SRCC should be further classified by the purity of the SRC component.

The Clinicopathological Characteristics And Genetic Alterations of Signet-ring Cell Carcinoma in Gastric Cancer

Signet-ring cell carcinoma (SRC) in advanced gastric cancer (GC) is often associated with more invasiveness and a worse prognosis than other cell types. The genetic alterations associated with gastric carcinogenesis in SRC are still unclear. In this study, 441 GC patients receiving curative surgery for GC between 2005 and 2013 were enrolled. The clinicopathological characteristics and genetic alterations of GC patients with and without SRC were compared. Among the 441 GC patients, 181 had SRC. For early GC, patients with SRC had more tumors located in the middle and lower stomach, more infiltrating tumors and better overall survival (OS) rates than those without SRC. For advanced GC, patients with SRC had more scirrhous type tumors, more PIK3CA amplifications, fewer microsatellite instability-high (MSI-H) tumors, more peritoneal recurrences and worse 5-year OS rates than those without SRC. For advanced GC with SRC, patients with peritoneal recurrence tended to have PD-L1 expression. For advanced GC without SRC, patients with liver metastasis tended to have PD-L1 expression, PI3K/AKT pathway mutations, TP53 mutations and MSI-H tumors. For advanced GC, PD-L1 expression was associated with peritoneal recurrence in SRC tumors, while non-SRC tumors with liver metastasis were likely to have PI3K/AKT pathway mutations, TP53 mutations and PD-L1 expression; immunotherapy and targeted therapy may be beneficial for these patients.

Different prognostic significance of signet ring cell histology for early and advanced gastric cancer patients: a systematic review and meta-analysis

OBJECTIVE

To review relevant studies and perform a meta-analysis to evaluate the prognostic significance of signet ring cell (SRC) histology for gastric cancer (GC) patients.

METHODS

Systematic literature search was performed using PubMed and Embase databases. The relevant data were extracted and the association between SRC histology and survival outcome were evaluated using a fixed-effect or random-effect model.

RESULTS

A total of 21 studies were included in this meta-analysis. The prevalence of SRC histology varied from 8.7% to 50%. SRC histology type was associated with poorer OS (HR: 1.12, 95%CI: 1.01-1.23, P = 0.034; I² = 85.1%) and DFS (HR: 1.17, 95%CI: 1.00-1.37, P = 0.040; I² = 63.6%). The subgroup analysis indicated that SRC type had a better OS than non-SRC type for early GC patients (HR: 0.60, 95%CI: 0.48-0.75, P < 0.001; I² = 33.7%). However, it was a poor prognostic factor for advanced GC when excluding stage IV patients (HR: 1.18, 95%CI: 1.07-1.29, P < 0.001; I² = 6.5%). SRC type had a higher risk of peritoneal recurrence than non-SRC type (OR: 1.36, 95%CI: 1.06-1.75, P = 0.017; I² = 1.3%).

CONCLUSION

SRC type had a distinctly different prognostic significance for early and advanced GC patients. SRC type was associated with better survival outcomes in early GC patients, but it was a predictive factor for poor survival in advanced GC patients.

Accuracy of endoscopic size measurements of early gastric signet ring cell carcinoma

BACKGROUND AND AIMS

Indications for endoscopic submucosal dissection (ESD) of early gastric cancer (EGC) are expanding, but signet ring cell carcinoma (SRC) is still unclear because of its unclear boundaries. The purpose of this study was to compare pathologic size and endoscopic size in SRC-type EGC and to find risk factors associated with tumor size underestimation.

METHODS

Medical records of 137 patients diagnosed with SRC-type EGC between January 2009 and December 2016 at our tertiary hospital were reviewed. According to pathologic and endoscopic tumor sizes, they were classified into correct estimation, underestimation, and overestimation groups, and risk factors related to underestimation were analyzed.

RESULTS

Among 137 patients with SRC-type EGC, 77 patients (56.2%) had undergone correct estimation, 43 patients (31.4%) had undergone underestimation, and 17 patients (12.4%) had undergone overestimation. Mean pathologic size (SD) was 20.1 (13.8) mm and mean endoscopic size (SD) was 17.9 (10.1) mm, the correlation coefficients were 0.919 (p < 0.001) , and there was no significant difference between the two groups. Multivariate analysis showed that tumor size more than 20 mm (OR 3.419; 95% CI 1.271-9.194; p = 0.015) and atrophy (OR 6.011; 95% CI 2.311-15.633; p = 0.001) were risk factors for tumor size underestimation.

CONCLUSION

There was no significant difference in pathologic and endoscopic size in SRC-type EGC. Therefore, ESD may be considered as a therapeutic option if the size of the tumor is less than 20 mm and atrophy is not present in the surrounding mucosa.

From biology to surgery: One step beyond histology for tailored surgical treatments of gastric cancer

Gastric cancer is the third most common cause of cancer related death. Although its incidence is globally declined, prognosis remains dismal in the Western hemisphere, while better outcomes are evidenced in Asian countries. Endoscopic or surgical resection with or without lymphadenectomy represents the only chance of cure, with limited improvements of the prognosis in case of associated chemotherapy in a neoadjuvant or adjuvant setting. This could be mainly attributed to the uniform fashion of treatment of gastric cancer, mainly based on the histological features, that usually do not reflect the complexity of the disease. With the recent introduction of genomic technologies and new generation sequencing techniques, gastric cancer biology is now investigated in great details. This has brought to the publication of three main molecular classifications, based on the underlying molecular biology of gastric cancer. Although only few clinical reports are currently present in literature, the identification of gastric cancer molecular subtypes has shown interesting findings that may pave the way to a tailored clinical and surgical management. The aim of this review is, thus, to give a comprehensive overview of the current molecular classifications as compared to the available histopathological ones, also focusing on the potential clinical and surgical benefits and the future perspectives for a more personalized treatment of gastric cancer.

Development and validation of prognostic nomogram based on log odds of positive lymph nodes for patients with gastric signet ring cell carcinoma

Objective

Our aims were to establish novel nomogram models, which directly targeted patients with signet ring cell carcinoma (SRC), for individualized prediction of overall survival (OS) rate and cancer-specific survival (CSS).

Methods

We selected 1,365 SRC patients diagnosed from 2010 to 2015 from Surveillance, Epidemiology and End Results (SEER) database, and then randomly partitioned them into a training cohort and a validation cohort. Independent predicted indicators, which were identified by using univariate testing and multivariate analyses, were used to construct our prognostic nomogram models. Three methods, Harrell concordance index (C-index), receiver operating characteristics (ROC) curve and calibration curve, were used to assess the ability of discrimination and predictive accuracy. Integrated discrimination improvement (IDI), net reclassification improvement (NRI) and decision curve analysis (DCA) were used to assess clinical utility of our nomogram models.

Results

Six independent predicted indicators, age, race, log odds of positive lymph nodes (LODDS), T stage, M stage and tumor size, were associated with OS rate. Nevertheless, only five independent predicted indicators were associated with CSS except race. The developed nomograms based on those independent predicted factors showed reliable discrimination. C-index of our nomogram for OS and CSS was 0.760 and 0.763, which were higher than American Joint Committee on Cancer (AJCC) 8th edition tumor-node-metastasis (TNM) staging system (0.734 and 0.741, respectively). C-index of validation cohort for OS was 0.757 and for CSS was 0.773. The calibration curves also performed good consistency. IDI, NRI and DCA showed the nomograms for both OS and CSS had a comparable clinical utility than the TNM staging system.

Conclusions

The novel nomogram models based on LODDS provided satisfying predictive ability of SRC both in OS and CSS than AJCC 8th edition TNM staging system alone.

Clinical Characteristics and Prognostic Analysis of Patients With Signet Ring Cell Gastric Carcinoma

We do not know the clinical and prognostic factors that influence the survival of patients with gastric signet ring cell carcinoma (SRC). Therefore, a retrospective review was undertaken of 219 patients with SRC who had undergone gastrectomy between January 2009 and December 2012 in our hospital. Patient age, sex, TNM stage, vessel carcinoma embolus, perineural invasion, tumor site and operation type, postoperative chemotherapy, and five-year overall survival were recorded and evaluated. In our study, 93 cases (42.5%) were signet ring cell carcinoma only, and 126 cases (57.5%) were signet ring cell carcinoma coexisting with other components (such as adenocarcinoma or mucus adenocarcinoma). Eighty-three patients were female, 136 were male, 46 occurred at the gastroesophageal junction (21.0%), 63 at the fundus/body (28.8%), 80 were antrum/pylorus (36.5%), and 30 were whole stomach (13.7%). The prognosis of gastric antrum/ pylorus cancer was the best (P < 0.05). There were 133 patients (60.7%) with stage III, and the single factor analysis showed that the earlier the stage, the better the prognosis. The overall five-year survival rate was 30.1% in all patients. One-hundred and 41 patients (64.4%) received D2 radical surgery, 64 (29.2%) received D1 radical operation, and 14 (6.4%) received palliative resection, and the patients who received D2 had the best overall survival (P < 0.05). The survival time of the paclitaxel-based regimen in postoperative adjuvant chemotherapy tended to be prolonged. There was no statistical difference in overall survival between the percentage of signet-ring cells and sex. In summary, age, tumor stage, and surgical resection combined with D2 lymphadenectomy were independent prognostic factors for SRC. Adjuvant chemotherapy with a paclitaxel-based regimen may improve the survival of patients with SRC.

Postoperative Radiotherapy Improves Survival in Gastric Signet-Ring Cell Carcinoma: a SEER Database Analysis

Purpose

To identify the potential therapeutic role of postoperative radiotherapy (RT) in patients with locally advanced (stage II and stage III) gastric signet ring cell carcinoma (SRC).

Materials and methods

Patients with locally advanced gastric SRC from the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results program database between 2004 and 2012 were included in our study. Univariate and multivariate Cox proportional models were performed, and survival curves were generated to evaluate the prognostic effect of postoperative RT and surgery alone on SRC patients. Propensity score matching (PSM) was used to avoid selection bias among the study cohorts.

Results

We found that patients with postoperative RT had better probability of survival compared with those who did not receive RT (overall survival [OS], P<0.001; cancer-specific survival [CSS], P<0.001). After PSM, analysis of both overall and CSS showed that patients who underwent postoperative RT had better prognosis than those receiving surgery alone in the matched cohort (OS, P=0.00079; CSS, P=0.0036). Multivariate Cox proportional model indicated that postoperative RT had better effect on prognosis compared with surgery alone with respect to both overall (hazard ratio [HR], 0.716; 95% confidence interval [95% CI], 0.590–0.87; P=0.001) and CSS (HR, 0.713; 95% CI, 0.570–0.890; P=0.003).

Conclusions

Postoperative RT had better prognosis compared with surgery alone for both overall and CSS for patients with locally advanced gastric SRC.

Effect of double-layer structure in intramucosal gastric signet-ring cell carcinoma on lymph node metastasis: a retrospective, single-center study

BACKGROUND

Among all types of gastric cancer (GC), signet-ring cell carcinoma (sig-GC) accounts for 4-17% of cases. The prognosis of early sig-GC is relatively good, with the 5-year survival rate at 99.7%. However, the correlation between histological features and lymph node metastasis (LNM) among pT1a (M) sig-GC remains unclear. Sig-GC often exhibits a double-layer structure (DLS) in the intramucosal layer, demonstrating functional differentiation into the normal gastric gland. Assumedly, the loss of the differentiation makes the DLS deranged, accounting for the occurrence of submucosal invasion and LNM. This study aimed to assess the proportion of DLS, to elucidate the correlation between histological features (including DLS) and LNM status, and to determine the LNM-negative condition in pT1a (M) sig-GC.

METHODS

We reviewed the pathological data of 310 patients with 310 intramucosal sig-GCs who received gastrectomy with lymph node dissection. Immunohistochemistry was performed on all specimens to evaluate the presence of DLS. Furthermore, we review the clinicopathological features, including tumor size, lymphovascular invasion (LVI), ulceration (UL), and DLS results, and then statistically analyze the correlation between these features and LNM status.

RESULTS

Overall, 129 pT1a (M) sig-GCs (42%) were DLS present. The univariate analysis revealed that "Tumor size > 20 mm", "UL present", and "DLS absent" were significant risk factors of LNM. The multivariate logistic regression analysis revealed only "DLS absent" as statistically significant.

CONCLUSIONS

"DLS absent" is a risk factor of LNM detected by the multivariate analysis. In pT1a (M), LVI absent, UL absent, tumor size > 20 mm, sig-GC, no LNM occurred in "DLS present" cases.

State of the art for gastric signet ring cell carcinoma: from classification, prognosis, and genomic characteristics to specified treatments

Gastric cancer (GC) is responsible for 9% of cancer deaths worldwide. Over 950,000 new cases are diagnosed each year, and about 90% of them are in advanced stage, requiring chemotherapy. In Europe there has been research based on pre- and postoperative chemotherapy treatment, using 5-fluorouracil, epirubicin, cisplatin, capecitabine, and docetaxel. Chemotherapy significantly impairs the quality of life of patients; however, the final effects are not always satisfactory. There is scientific evidence that gastric mucus tumors and signet ring cell carcinomas have a pattern of specific signatures, that distinguish them from other gastric cancer subtypes, and may be associated with a poor response to systematic treatment. Signet ring cell carcinoma is less chemosensitive than others, and the increase in the percentage of signet ring cells correlates with resistance to chemotherapy. Perioperative chemotherapy in advanced signet ring cell carcinomas is an independent factor of poor prognosis and survival, which is explained by the toxicity of neoadjuvant treatment. Therefore, curative surgical resection enhanced by standardized lymphadenectomy remains the recommended gold standard in GC therapy. According to presented studies, early detection and aggressive treatments for this subtype of GC is a reasonable approach. This review paper is mostly addressed to physicians who are interested in updating to the state of the art concerning different subtypes of gastric carcinoma.

Clinicopathological differences in signet ring cell adenocarcinoma between early and advanced gastric cancer

BACKGROUND

Signet ring cell adenocarcinoma is a histological classification based on the WHO classification. The presence of this specific histological type is associated with a worse pathological appearance. The prognosis of signet ring cell adenocarcinoma in gastric cancer patients after curative surgery is still under debate.

METHODS

From January 1988 to December 2012, a total of 2971 patients, including 819 early and 2152 advanced gastric cancer patients underwent curative resection for gastric cancer. Among them, there were 185 cases of signet ring cell adenocarcinoma in early gastric cancer patients, while there were 570 cases in advanced gastric cancer patients.

RESULTS

The overall incidence of signet ring cell adenocarcinoma was 25.4%. Our results showed that the 5-year overall survival rates of early gastric cancer patients with signet ring cell adenocarcinoma and non-signet ring cell adenocarcinoma were 90.7 and 83.2%, respectively (P = 0.001). The 5-year disease-free survival rates of early gastric cancer patients with signet ring cell adenocarcinoma and non-signet ring cell adenocarcinoma were 87.4 and 81.6%, respectively (P = 0.003). The 5-year overall survival rates of advanced gastric cancer patients with signet ring cell adenocarcinoma and non-signet ring cell adenocarcinoma were 32.1 and 37.9%, respectively (P = 0.041). The 5-year disease-free survival rates of advanced gastric cancer patients with signet ring cell adenocarcinoma and non-signet ring cell adenocarcinoma were 28.6 and 35.2%, respectively (P = 0.037). Signet ring cell adenocarcinoma was an independent predictor for overall survival in advanced gastric cancer (P = 0.017).

CONCLUSION

The clinical features and prognosis of signet ring cell adenocarcinoma are different between early and advanced gastric cancer. Signet ring cell adenocarcinoma is a poor prognostic factor in advanced gastric cancer after curative resection.

Risk Factors of Lymph Node Metastasis in Patients with Early Pure and Mixed Signet Ring Cell Gastric Carcinomas

Background: Early gastric carcinoma (EGC) with pure signet ring cell carcinoma (pSRCC) has been reported to have favourable prognosis and low risk of lymph node metastasis (LNM). However, risk factors of LNM and clinicopathological features for early gastric mixed signet ring cell carcinoma (mSRCC) remain poorly investigated. The aim of this study was to identify risk factors of LNM and compare clinicopathological characteristics and prognosis of early gastric pSRCC with mSRCC.

Methods: This retrospective study was conducted at our center between 2005 and 2015 in 796 patients underwent radical gastrectomies combined with lymph node dissections, A total of 160 patients with early gastric SRCC underwent gastrectomies with lymph node dissections were reviewed, in which 79 cases were pSRCC and 81 cases were mSRCC. Risk factors of LNM and clinicopathologic features of these two groups were statistically compared, including age, gender, tumor location, gross pattern, size, invasion depth, lymphovascular invasion (LVI), helicobacter pylori (Hp) infection, atrophic gastritis, ulcer finding and LNM. Patients were follow-up for post-resection survival. The 5-year survival and disease-specific survival rate were estimated with the Kaplain-Meier method with a log-rank test and compared between the two groups.

Results: Tumor size (P<0.05), invision depth (P<0.05) and LVI (P < 0.0001) were risk factors of LNM, LVI (P < 0.0001) was independent risk factor of LNM in 160 patients. Univariate analysis reviewed LVI (P < 0.0001) as the risk factor in the pSRCC group, and the risk factors of LNM in the mSRCC included LVI (P < 0.0001) and tumor size (P<0.05). Multivariable analysis revealed two independent risk factors in the mSRCC group: 1) tumor size (P < 0.05), and 2) LVI (P < 0.0001). The significant characteristics in two groups included the male gender (P < 0.0001), gross pattern (P < 0.05), LVI (P < 0.01), and Hp infection (P < 0.01). The difference of LNM rate between expanded indication and out of indication in 160 patients was significant (P=0.03). The overall 5-year survival rate for early gastric SRCC was 96.3%. There was no significant difference in the overall survival and disease-specific survival between the two groups.

Conclusions: Although with similar post-resection survival, the independent risk factors of LNM in the early mSRCC group, compared to those in the early pSRCC group, included large tumor size and LVI. Early gastric mSRCC had more aggressive clinicopathological features than pSRCC.

Prognostic Stratification of Advanced Gastric Signet Ring Cell Carcinoma by Clinicopathological Factors and GALNT14 Genotype

Background: Gastric signet ring cell carcinoma (SRCC) is a histologic variant characterized by abundant intracytoplasmic mucin. Although it has been recognized that gastric adenocarcinoma harboring this feature has poorer prognosis, prognostic stratification within gastric SRCCs themselves has not been clearly defined. N-acetylgalactosaminyltransferase14 (GALNT14) genotype has been associated to poorer treatment outcome in mucinous type colorectal cancer. Here we incorporated clinicopathological factors and GALNT14 genotype to stratify prognosis of advanced gastric SRCC. Methods: Totally 347 gastric SRCC patients were retrospectively enrolled for GALNT14 genotyping. Clinicopathological factors were included for prognosis stratification. Results: Of the 347 patients, 341 underwent radical-intent gastrectomy and 6 received palliative gastrectomy. Kaplan-Meier analysis for overall survival indicated that Tumor-Node-Metastasis staging could only stratify the patients into three prognosis-distinguishable groups: group-1 (stage IA); group-2 (stage IB/IIA) and group-3 (the remaining Tumor-Node-Metastasis stages combined). Multivariate Cox-proportional hazard models for group-3 patients revealed GALNT14 "TT" genotype (P = 0.0482). Tumor size (P = 0.0009), node status (P <0.0001), metastasis status (P = 0.0096), and perineural invasion (P = 0.037) independently associated with unfavorable OS. Exploratory subgroup analysis showed that GALNT14"TT" genotype was associated with unfavorable OS in SRCCs with more aggressive phenotypes: node status >0 (P = 0.0013), lymphatic invasion (P = 0.021), vascular invasion (P = 0.0076) and perineural invasion (P = 0.0161). Accordingly, a scoring system was established capable of stratifying advanced gastric SRCC patients into three distinguishable prognostic subgroups. Conclusions: Gastric SRCC could be stratified into different prognostic subgroups by combining clinicopathological factors and GALNT14 genotype.

Mixed poorly differentiated adenocarcinoma in undifferentiated-type early gastric cancer predicts endoscopic noncurative resection

BACKGROUND

Comparisons between surgical cases of mixed poorly differentiated adenocarcinoma and pure signet ring cell carcinoma have revealed higher frequencies of lymph node metastasis and submucosal invasion in the former. However, this comparison has not been reported for endoscopically treated cases. Therefore, we compared cases of curative and noncurative resection in patients who underwent endoscopic submucosal dissection to determine what factors could influence the curative resection rate.

METHODS

We analyzed 268 undifferentiated-type early gastric cancers in 264 patients treated with endoscopic submucosal dissection in our hospital between March 2005 and March 2017, involving 229 and 39 cases of curative and noncurative resection, respectively. Treatment results were compared between 129 lesions of pure signet ring cell carcinoma and 139 lesions of mixed poorly differentiated adenocarcinoma.

RESULTS

The overall curative resection rate was 85.4% (229/268). On comparing noncurative and curative resection cases, after excluding factors that determine curative resection (e.g., tumor diameter), we found that the former was associated with older age and significantly more mixed poorly differentiated adenocarcinomas, with odds ratios of 1.052 [95% confidence interval (CI), 1.017-1.089] and 2.746 (95% CI, 1.162-6.485), respectively, on multivariate analysis. The curative resection rate was significantly higher in pure signet ring cell carcinoma than in mixed poorly differentiated adenocarcinoma (93.8% vs. 77.7%, respectively).

CONCLUSION

Advanced age and mixed poorly differentiated adenocarcinoma predicted endoscopic noncurative resection.

Neural Invasion is a Significant Contributor to Peritoneal Recurrence in Signet Ring Cell Gastric Carcinoma

BACKGROUND

Gastric signet ring cell carcinoma (SRC) has shown a favorable outcome in early stages but has a worse prognosis than non-SRC in advanced stages. However, the cause for this stage-dependent prognostic impact has not been determined. This study aimed to compare clinicopathologic features and recurrence patterns between gastric SRC and non-SRC in a cohort of Eastern patients.

METHODS

This study reviewed the prospectively collected data of 764 patients undergoing curative resection for gastric cancer from 2005 to 2008. The demographics, clinicopathologic characteristics, disease-specific survival (DSS) rate, and recurrence-free survival (RFS) rate of the patients were analyzed.

RESULTS

The SRC patients (n = 176) had a worse prognosis than the non-SRC patients (n = 588), especially in stages T3 and T4. Peritoneal recurrence and the incidence of neural invasion (NI) were significantly increased in the SRC patients, albeit only in stages T3 and T4. In the T3 and T4 patients with NI, peritoneal recurrence occurred more frequently in SRC than in non-SRC (28.7% vs. 13.7%; p = 0.001), but not in the T3 and T4 patients without NI. Only in the patients with NI, SRC led to a significantly shorter DSS (67.6 vs. 90.7 months; p = 0.008) and RFS (67.1 vs. 80.3 months; p = 0.036) than non-SRC.

CONCLUSIONS

This report is the first to present the relationship between NI and peritoneal recurrence as the cause of stage-dependent prognoses for SRC. A better understanding of NI may lend insight into cancer spread and recurrence, especially in gastric SRC.

Survival in signet ring cell carcinoma varies based on primary tumor location: a Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results database analysis

BACKGROUND

The aim of this study was to investigate the survival of patients with signet ring cell carcinoma (SRCC) based on primary tumor location.

METHODS

Patient data were obtained from the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results database (1988-2012) with ≥200 cases per tumor location. Cox regression analysis was used to investigate prognostic factors of cause-specific survival (CSS).

RESULTS

We identified 24,171 patients. Of the patients, 63.4% had gastric SRCC, followed by colon (18.2%), esophageal (5.0%), rectal (3.5%), lung (3.1%), pancreatic (1.8%), breast (1.5%), bladder (1.3%), small intestine (1.1%), and gallbladder SRCC (1.0%). The 5-year CSS was 22.1%, 69.0%, 33.2%, 28.1%, 24.8%, 16.1%, 13.6%, 12.6%, 11.0%, 6.4% in patients with gastric, breast, colon, rectum, bladder, small intestine, esophageal, gallbladder, lung, and pancreatic SRCC, respectively (P < 0.001). Multivariate analyses showed that the primary tumor location was an independent prognostic factor of survival. Patients with lung, small intestine, and bladder SRCC had a comparable CSS to gastric SRCC, while breast and colorectal SRCC had better survival than gastric SRCC. Esophageal, gallbladder, and pancreatic SRCC were significantly associated with poor CSS compared with gastric SRCC.

CONCLUSION

Our study suggests a major difference in survival of SRCC based on the primary tumor locations.

Clinicopathological Characteristics and Prognostic Value of Signet Ring Cells in Gastric Carcinoma: A Meta-Analysis

Background and Objectives: Previous studies of the prognostic value of the signet ring cell (SRC) type have yielded inconsistent results. Therefore, the aim of the present meta-analysis is to explore the clinicopathological characteristics and prognostic value of SRCs.

Methods: Relevant articles that compared SRC and non-SRC type in PubMed and Web of Science were comprehensively searched. Then, a meta-analysis was performed.

Results: A total of 19 studies including 35947 cases were analyzed. Compared with non-SRC patients, SRC patients tended to be younger (WMD: -3.88, P=0.001) and predominantly female (OR: 1.60, P<0.001). Additionally, SRC patients exhibited less upper third tumor location (OR: 0.62, P<0.001) and less frequent hematogenous metastasis (OR: 0.41, P<0.001). There was no difference in overall survival (OS) between SRC and non-SRC patients in the total population (HR: 1.02, P=0.830). Early gastric cancer with SRCs was associated with better OS (HR: 0.57, P=0.002), while advanced gastric cancer with non-SRCs was associated with a worse prognosis (HR: 1.17, P<0.001).

Conclusions: This meta-analysis revealed that SRC tends to affect young females and tends to be located in the middle and lower third of the stomach. Early SRCs are associated with better prognoses, while advanced SRCs are associated with worse prognoses.

Histologic purity of signet ring cell carcinoma is a favorable risk factor for lymph node metastasis in poorly cohesive, submucosa-invasive early gastric carcinoma

BACKGROUND

The prediction of biologic behavior of poorly cohesive early gastric carcinoma (EGC) is an important issue in the selection of the treatment modality. To elucidate the risk factors for lymph node metastasis (LNM) of poorly cohesive EGC, we focused on the histologic purity of the poorly cohesive component and evaluated the impact of this factor on LNM.

METHODS

We divided poorly cohesive EGC into (1) pure signet ring cell (SRC) carcinoma, which was defined as composed only of signet ring cells or poorly cohesive cells and (2) mixed SRC carcinoma, defined as poorly cohesive carcinoma with minor tubular components. We reviewed the clinicopathologic features, including age, sex, location, size, depth, lymphovascular invasion (LVI), LNM, ulceration, and intestinal metaplasia between the two groups in a large series of poorly cohesive, submucosa-invasive EGC (n = 317).

RESULTS

LNM was found in 58 cases (18.3 %). Mixed SRC carcinoma histologic type (p < 0.001), larger tumor size (more than 2 cm) (p = 0.012), and the presence of LVI (p < 0.001) were associated with LNM. Pure SRC carcinomas accounted for 56.2 % (178/317) of the cases. Fourteen pure SRC carcinomas (7.8 %) showed LNM, whereas 44 mixed SRC carcinomas (31.9 %) exhibited LNM (p < 0.001). On multivariate logistic regression, the presence of LVI (odds ratio 6.737; 95 % confidence interval 2.714-16.720; p < 0.001) and mixed SRC carcinoma histologic type (odds ratio 4.674; 95 % confidence interval 2.370-9.216; p < 0.001) were independent predictors of LNM in poorly cohesive, submucosa-invasive EGC.

CONCLUSIONS

The presence of a tubular component in SRC carcinoma was a risk factor for LNM in poorly cohesive, submucosa-invasive EGC. On the basis of this finding, we propose that the presence of a minor tubular component or the purity of the poorly cohesive/SRC carcinoma component should be reported in daily pathologic practice.

Differential Prognostic Implications of Gastric Signet Ring Cell Carcinoma: Stage Adjusted Analysis From a Single High-volume Center in Asia

Objective:

The aim of this study was to analyze the clinicopathologic characteristics and prognosis of signet ring cell carcinoma (SRC) according to disease status (early vs advanced gastric cancer) in gastric cancer patients.

Background:

The prognostic implication of gastric SRC remains a subject of debate.

Methods:

A retrospective analysis was performed using the clinical records of 7667 patients including 1646 SRC patients who underwent radical gastrectomy between 2001 and 2010. A further analysis was also performed after dividing patients into three groups according to histologic subtype: SRC, well-to-moderately differentiated (WMD), and poorly differentiated adenocarcinoma.

Results:

SRC patients have younger age distribution and female predominance compared with other histologic subtypes. Notably, the distribution of T stage of SRC patients was distinct, located in extremes (T1: 66.2% and T4: 20%). Moreover, the prognosis of SRC in early gastric cancer and advanced gastric cancer was contrasting. In early gastric cancer, SRC demonstrated more favorable prognosis than WMD after adjusting for age, sex, and stage. In contrast, SRC in advanced gastric cancer displayed worse prognosis than WMD. As stage increased, survival outcomes of SRC continued to worsen compared with WMD.

Conclusions:

Although conferring favorable prognosis in early stage, SRC has worse prognostic impact as disease progresses. The longstanding controversy of SRC on prognosis may result from disease status at presentation, which leads to differing prognosis compared with tubular adenocarinoma.

A Risk-prediction Model Based on Lymph-node Metastasis for Incorporation Into a Treatment Algorithm for Signet Ring Cell-type Intramucosal Gastric Cancer

OBJECTIVE

The aim of the study was to develop a reliable and easy-to-use risk-scoring system (RSS) to predict lymph-node metastasis (LNM) and determine the feasibility of endoscopic submucosal dissection for mucosa-confined signet ring cell carcinomas (SRCs).

BACKGROUND

Fewer LNM and better survival rates have been reported for early gastric SRCs compared with other undifferentiated early gastric cancers (EGCs).

METHODS

Data from 1544 patients with mucosa-confined SRCs were reviewed. Stepwise logistic regression analysis determined the independent predictors of LNM. Risk scores were based on the final predictive factors for LNM, and performance was internally validated using a split-sample approach. External validation was also performed in an independent dataset (n = 208) to assess the discriminatory power of the RSS.

RESULTS

The overall LNM incidence was 3.8% (57/1544). Three risk factors (tumor size ≥1.7 cm, tumors of elevated type, and lymphatic-vascular involvement) were significantly associated with LNM. These factors were incorporated into the RSS, and were assigned scores ranging from 0 to 4. The area under the receiver-operating characteristic curve for predicting LNM after internal and external validation was 0.68 (95% confidence interval, 0.0793-0.2865) and 0.686 (95% confidence interval, 0.618-0.748), respectively. A score of 2 points was the optimal cut-off value for LNM prediction, and the overall diagnostic accuracy was 96%. LNM were found in 2.9% and 23.8% of the low and high-risk groups of the RSS, respectively.

CONCLUSIONS

A RSS may help to predict LNM and evaluate endoscopic submucosal dissection feasibility in patients with intramucosal SRC.

Surgical Considerations in the Management of Gastric Adenocarcinoma

Since Theodor Billroth and César Roux perfected the methods of postgastrectomy reconstruction in as early as the late nineteenth century, surgical management of gastric cancer has made incremental progress. The longstanding and contentious debate on the optimal extent of lymph node dissection for gastric cancer seems to have settled in favor of D2 dissection. Pylorus-preserving distal (central) gastrectomy has emerged as a less invasive, function-preserving option for T1N0 middle-third gastric cancers. Frozen section analysis of margins seems partially helpful in this direction. Last, the role of palliative gastrectomy in patients with metastatic seems less important than initially thought.

Prognostic Impact of Different Histological Types on Gastric Adenocarcinoma: a Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results Database Analysis

The clinicopathological characteristics and prognosis of gastric mucinous adenocarcinoma (MAC) and signet ring cell carcinoma (SRC) are still controversial. We designed our study to evaluate the clinicopathologic features and prognosis of MAC, SRC and ordinary gastric adenocarcinoma (OGAC) by analyzing the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER)-registered database. The 5-year overall survival (OS) of patients with SRC was significantly lower than that of patients with MAC (P = 0.001) and OGAC (P < 0.001), and there was no significant difference in 5-year OS between MAC and OGAC (P = 0.804). Furthermore, there were no significant differences of 5-years OS among these three groups at stage I, II and III (all P > 0.05) and no significant difference between MAC and OGAC at stage IV (P = 0.110). Patients in SRC group had significantly worse survival than those in MAC and OGAC at stage IV (both P = 0.008), with 5-year OS of 3.3%, 5.8%, and 5.8%, respectively. However, the histological type was not found to be an independent prognostic factor of gastric cancer according to the multivariate analysis with Cox regression.

Is signet-ring cell carcinoma a specific entity among gastric cancers?

BACKGROUND

The prognosis and chemoresistance of signet-ring cell (SRC) gastric adenocarcinoma have been reported and debated, and the utility of perioperative chemotherapy for such a tumor has been questioned . This study was performed to assess the impact of the SRC type on survival following resection of gastric adenocarcinoma, and to assess whether the prognostic factors (including perioperative chemotherapy) for non-SRC adenocarcinoma differed from those for SRC adenocarcinoma.

METHODS

1799 cases of adenocarcinoma that were consecutively treated from 1997 to 2010 in 19 French centers by subtotal or total gastrectomy were included in a retrospective study. A D2 lymphadenectomy was performed for antropyloric tumors, and a modified D2 for upper tumors. SRC adenocarcinoma was diagnosed based on the presence of isolated carcinoma cells containing mucin.

RESULTS

A total gastrectomy was performed in 979 (54.4 %) patients. SRC adenocarcinoma was diagnosed in 899 (50 %) patients. Patients with an SRC tumor were more frequently female, younger, and malnourished, had lower ASA scores, and had larger tumors than non-SRC patients. Median survival in patients with non-SRC carcinoma was 51 months, as compared to 26 months in patients with SRC carcinoma (p < 0.001). At multivariate analysis, SRC type remained an independent adverse prognostic factor (HR = 1.182). Factors that were prognostic in the SRC subgroup but not in the non-SRC subgroup were age >60 years, linitis, and involvement of adjacent organs. In contrast to non-SRC tumors, pre- and postoperative chemotherapy did not significantly impact on survival following resection of SRC adenocarcinoma.

CONCLUSION

In comparison to non-SRC adenocarcinoma, the SRC type has a worse prognosis, different prognostic factors, and is only poorly sensitive to perioperative chemotherapy. Non-SRC and SRC adenocarcinomas should be considered different entities in future therapeutic trials.

Early signet ring cell carcinoma of the stomach is related to favorable prognosis and low incidence of lymph node metastasis

BACKGROUND

The aim of this study was to evaluate the clinical characteristics of early signet ring cell carcinoma of the stomach (SRC) and to investigate the optimal treatment strategy for early SRC.

METHODS

A total of 746 patients with pT1 gastric cancer (GC), who had undergone surgical resection between 1997 and 2012 were analyzed. Of these, 190 patients with SRC were enrolled in this study.

RESULTS

(i) The patients with SRC showed a significantly longer overall survival (P = 0.012) and disease free survival (P = 0.004) than patients with the other histological types. Multivariate analysis identified SRC as an independent factor predicting favorable prognosis in pT1 GC (HR = 0.38; 95% CI: 0.11-0.96; P = 0.041). Specifically, in undifferentiated pT1 GC, SRC was significantly less associated with lymph node metastasis (LNM) (OR = 0.39; 95% CI: 0.15-0.96; P = 0.042). (ii) From the viewpoint of a histological mixed-type, pure-SRC with pT1a was not associated with LNM regardless of tumor size (0.0%, 0/110), whereas mixed-SRC was an independent risk factor for LNM (OR = 7.19; 95% CI: 1.51-43.9; P = 0.012).

CONCLUSIONS

Patients with early SRC have a favorable prognosis with a low incidence of LNM. However, care should be taken with mixed-SRC, which consists of SRC and other histological types. J. Surg. Oncol. 2016;114:607-612. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

The characteristics and prognostic value of signet ring cell histology in gastric cancer: A retrospective cohort study of 2199 consecutive patients

Although signet ring cell cancer (SRCC) has long been regarded as an adverse prognostic factor of gastric cancer, the findings of existing studies on this issue are inconsistent. We conducted a retrospective cohort study of 2199 consecutive patients with gastric cancer treated in a tertiary cancer hospital in Beijing, China, 1994 to 2013. The characteristics of SRCC and non-SRCC were compared. The prognostic effects of SRCC and other important clinicopathological factors on overall survival were evaluated by both univariate and multivariate Cox regression analyses and expressed as hazard ratio (HR) with 95% confidence interval (CI). SRCC accounted for 16.1% of gastric cancer, increasing from 6% to 20% over the last 2 decades, and was associated with younger age, female sex, poor differentiation, diffuse type, and distal location. SRCC (HR: 1.387, 95% CI: 1.177-1.634), stage (HR: 1.752, 95% CI: 1.458-2.106), surgery (palliative resection: HR: 0.712, 95% CI: 0.590-0.859; curative resection: HR: 0.490, 95% CI: 0.380-0.633), performance status (HR: 1.849, 95% CI: 1.553-2.201), and age (HR: 1.070, 95% CI: 1.001-1.143) were independent prognostic factors for gastric cancer, whereas time period of diagnosis, sex, and tumor location were not statistically significantly associated with overall survival. Subgroup analyses showed that the prognostic value of SRCC did not vary much with age, sex, performance status, stage, and surgery and chemotherapy status. As compared with non-SRCC, SRCC accounted for increasingly more of gastric cancer and was associated with younger age, female sex, poor differentiation, diffuse type, and distal location. It was an independent prognostic factor associated with worse survival in gastric cancer.

Prognostic factors of intraperitoneal chemotherapy for peritoneal carcinomatosis of gastric cancer: A retrospective study from a single center

Peritoneal carcinomatosis (PC) of gastric origin is currently recognized as a terminal disease with a poor prognosis. Advancements in novel therapeutic approaches, including intraperitoneal chemotherapy (IPC), have recently been made and it is believed that this may have contributed to the improved survival observed in patients with PC. The present study aimed to investigate overall survival (OS) and the associated prognostic factors in patients with PC of gastric origin who underwent IPC. A total of 57 patients were studied, with a median age of 51 years. The median follow-up time was 12.4 months. PC was diagnosed in all patients with gastric cancer. The median survival time of all patients was 10.1 months, whilst the OS rate at 1, 2 and 3 years was observed to be 46, 19 and 12%, respectively. Symptomatic ascites and a signet ring cell (SRC) histopathological type were demonstrated to signify a poor prognosis. Complete resection of all gross disease (CCR-0) and an increased number of cycles of systemic chemotherapy were independent factors that were observed to correlate with increased OS. The most common morbidities of grade 3/4 adverse effects were bone marrow suppression, nausea or vomiting, and diarrhea. In conclusion, IPC is an important treatment option for patients with PC that has originated from gastric cancer. Symptomatic ascites and SRC adenocarcinoma serve as negative clinicopathological prognostic factors, whilst CCR-0 and increased systemic chemotherapy cycles (≥4 cycles) may prove to be an important therapeutic option for PC patients.

The Clinicopathological Features and Long-Term Survival Outcomes of Mucinous Gastric Carcinoma: a Consecutive Series of 244 Cases from a Single Institute

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES

Mucinous gastric carcinoma (MGC) is a rare kind of malignancy with unclear prognosis. This study aims to assess the clinicopathological features and prognosis of MGC.

METHODS

We retrospectively analyzed a consecutive series of 244 MGC patients who underwent radical gastrectomy with D2 lymphadenectomy, and compared the data with 260 gastric signet ring cell carcinoma (SRC) patients.

RESULTS

The univariate survival analysis showed that the surgical types, diameter of the primary tumor, the Borrmann type, pathological depth of tumor invasion (pT), pathological number of metastatic lymph node (pN), pathological tumor lymph metastasis (pTNM), and vascular invasion were all significant predictors of survival (all P < 0.05). The multivariate survival analysis revealed that the diameter of the tumor, the Borrmann type, pT, pTNM stage, and vascular invasion as an independent predictive factor of survival (all P < 0.05). Compared with the SRC group, the MGC group had more male patients, more elder patients, larger tumor diameter, more T3 and T4 invasion to the gastric wall, more patients with metastatic lymph nodes, more pTNM stage III, and less Borrmann type 1. The overall survival rate of patients with MGC was significantly lower than that of patients with SRC (P < 0.001).

CONCLUSIONS

MGC was an aggressive malignancy which had unique clinicopathological features.

Intramucosal Signet Ring Cell Gastric Cancer Diagnosed 15 Months after the Initial Endoscopic Examination

The size and shape of intramucosal signet ring gastric cancer in this case remained endoscopically unchanged for 15 months. Laparoscopy-assisted distal gastrectomy was performed, and immunohistochemical analysis revealed Ki-67 and p53 mutations to be negative in this case. Signet ring gastric cancer has long been thought to confer a worse prognosis than other forms of gastric cancer; however, our case did not progress to advanced gastric cancer for 15 months.

The Prognostic Value of Signet-Ring Cell Histology in Resected Gastric Adenocarcinoma

BACKGROUND

Conflicting data exist on the prognostic implication of signet-ring cell (SRC) histology in gastric adenocarcinoma (GAC).

METHODS

All patients who underwent curative-intent resection of GAC from the seven institutions of the U.S. Gastric Cancer Collaborative between 2000 and 2012 were included. Primary end points were recurrence-free survival (RFS) and overall survival (OS). Stage-specific analyses were performed.

RESULTS

A total of 768 patients met the inclusion criteria. SRC was present in 40.6 % of patients and was associated with female sex (52.9 vs. 38.6 %; p < 0.001), younger age (61 vs. 67 years; p < 0.001), poor differentiation (94.8 vs. 50.3 %; p < 0.001), perineural invasion (PNI) (41.4 vs. 23 %; p < 0.001), microscopically positive resection margins (R1, 24.7 vs. 8.6 %; p < 0.001), distal location (82.2 vs. 70.1 %; p < 0.001), receipt of adjuvant therapy (63 vs. 51.2 %; p = 0.002), and more advanced stage (stage 3: 55.2 vs. 36.5 %; p < 0.001). SRC was associated with earlier recurrence (56.7 months vs. median not reached; p = 0.009) and decreased OS (33.7 vs. 46.6 months; p = 0.011). When accounting for other adverse pathologic features, PNI (hazard ratio [HR] 1.57; p = 0.016) and higher stage (HR 2.64; p < 0.001) were associated with decreased RFS, but SRC was not. Although PNI (HR 1.52; p = 0.007), higher stage (HR 2.11; p < 0.001), greater size (HR 1.05; p = 0.016), and adjuvant therapy (HR 0.50; p < 0.001) were associated with OS, SRC was not. Similarly, when accounting for adverse pathologic factors on multivariate analysis, stage-specific analyses showed no association between SRC and RFS or OS.

CONCLUSIONS

SRC histology is associated with adverse pathologic features including poor differentiation, higher stage, and microscopically positive resection margins but is not independently associated with reduced RFS or OS. Identification of signet-ring histology during preoperative evaluation should not, in isolation, dictate treatment strategy.