Prognostic significance of tumor budding and residual viable tumor volume in post-neoadjuvant resection specimens of locally advanced cervical cancer
摘要
Cervical cancer remains a leading cause of cancer-related mortality in women, with locally advanced disease posing significant therapeutic challenges. This study evaluated the prognostic significance of tumor budding (TB) and residual viable tumor (RVT) among 101 patients with locally advanced cervical cancer (LACC) treated with neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NACT) followed by radical surgery. Using the modified International Tumor Budding Consensus Conference (ITBCC) criteria, we found that the TB-positive subgroup had significantly worse overall survival (OS) in univariate analysis (HR = 8.57; P < 0.001). Both TB-positive status (HR = 2.96; P = 0.045) and RVT > 10% (HR = 4.25; P = 0.024) were significant predictors of poorer recurrence-free survival (RFS). Multivariate analysis confirmed that RVT > 10% (HR = 3.66; P = 0.048) was an independent prognostic factor for RFS. These results support integrating TB and RVT assessment into the standard pathological evaluation of post-NACT surgical resection specimens from LACC patients.