Implications of volume of nodal metastasis in patients with adenocarcinoma of the prostate.

We divided 73 cases of pelvic nodal metastases from prostatic cancer into subgroups based upon the volume and extent of nodal disease. Of the patients with gross nodal disease 15 per cent survived 5 years without progression compared to 27 per cent of those with microscopic involvement of more than 1 node and 44 per cent with a single positive node. On the other hand, 52 per cent of the patients with gross disease died of prostatic cancer within 5 years compared to 37 per cent of those with multiple microscopic nodes and 28 per cent with a single node. Although other variables also influence prognosis, the differences in survival demonstrable within these subgroups may have important implications regarding selection of therapy and interpretation of treatment results.