Background/Objectives: Colorectal cancer is the third most common cancer worldwide, making lymph node recovery critical for treatment decisions and prognosis. The relationship between body mass index (BMI) and the number of lymph nodes retrieved during laparoscopic and open surgeries remains controversial. This study aimed to evaluate whether surgical approach and BMI influence lymph node retrieval in colon cancer surgeries. Methods: A retrospective analysis was conducted on 560 patients who underwent colon cancer surgery at a single institution between 2018 and 2023. The average number of lymph nodes retrieved during laparoscopic and open procedures was compared. Distribution analysis using violin plots was performed to assess the pattern of lymph node yield between surgical approaches. Additionally, the impact of BMI on lymph node recovery was assessed. All surgeries were performed by a standardized surgical team using consistent fat clearance techniques. Results: The mean number of lymph nodes retrieved was 15.89 ± 0.84 for laparoscopic surgeries and 15.98 ± 0.50 for open surgeries, with no statistically significant difference (p= 0.9166). The violin plot analysis confirmed overlapping distributions between the two surgical approaches, with no significant difference (p= 0.6270). BMI also showed no significant effect on the number of lymph nodes removed during surgery. The consistency in outcomes was attributed to standardized surgical practices across all cases. Conclusions: Laparoscopic and open surgical approaches yield comparable lymph node recovery in colon cancer surgeries, both in terms of mean values and overall distribution patterns, regardless of patient BMI. These findings emphasize the importance of standardized surgical techniques in ensuring reliable outcomes and suggest that both approaches are equally effective in meeting oncological standards for lymph node retrieval.
背景/目的：结直肠癌是全球第三大常见癌症，淋巴结检出数量对治疗决策和预后评估至关重要。腹腔镜与开腹手术中体质指数（BMI）与淋巴结检出数量的关系仍存争议。本研究旨在评估手术方式及BMI是否影响结肠癌手术的淋巴结检出数量。方法：对2018至2023年间在同一机构接受结肠癌手术的560例患者进行回顾性分析，比较腹腔镜与开腹手术的淋巴结平均检出数量。采用小提琴图进行分布分析以评估不同术式淋巴结检出模式，同时分析BMI对淋巴结检出的影响。所有手术均由标准化团队采用一致的脂肪清除技术完成。结果：腹腔镜手术平均淋巴结检出数量为15.89±0.84枚，开腹手术为15.98±0.50枚，无统计学显著差异（p=0.9166）。小提琴图分析显示两种术式淋巴结检出分布重叠，无显著差异（p=0.6270）。BMI对术中淋巴结检出数量亦无显著影响。结果的一致性归因于所有病例采用的标准化手术操作。结论：在结肠癌手术中，无论患者BMI如何，腹腔镜与开腹手术在淋巴结检出数量均值及整体分布模式上均具有可比性。这些发现强调了标准化手术技术对保证结果可靠性的重要性，提示两种术式在达到肿瘤学淋巴结检出标准方面具有同等效力。
Breaking Myths: Comparable Outcomes in Lymph Node Analysis Across Surgical Methods
肿瘤(癌症)患者之家