E. Raimond

Impact of age on surgical excision margins for vulvar squamous cell carcinomas: A multicenter study by the francogyn group

Vulvar cancer is a rare cancer, it most often affects older women, with tumours of more advanced size and stage than in younger patients. The first-line treatment for vulvar cancer is surgery. Current European and American guidelines recommend negative histological margins. As tumor size is greater in older patients, the aim of this study was to assess the impact of patient age on surgical excision margins in squamous cell carcinomas of the vulva. This was a retrospective multicenter observational study. A descriptive analysis of the population was performed and a univariate analysis was performed according to patient age. Survival data were plotted using the Kaplan-Meier method and compared using a log rank test. Survival was analyzed using a Cox model to calculate the Hazard Ratio. Among the 547 patients included, there were 206 patients <65 years and 341 ≥ 65 years, including 135 ≥ 80 years. Median postoperative histological lesion size and interquartile range was greater in patients ≥65 years (30 mm [18-45] versus 26 mm [14-34], p < 0.001). Patients ≥65 years of age more often benefited from radical total vulvectomy (n = 103 (28.8 %) versus n = 44 (20.4 %), p = 0.03). However, negative surgical excision margins were identical between the 2 groups (n = 180 (87.4 %) versus n = 286 (83.9 %), p = 0.21). Revision surgery was performed more frequently in patients <65 years. Recurrence-free survival was better in patients aged <65 years (HR = 0.60; CI95 % (0.45-0.82), p = 0.001). Despite larger tumour size, age is not a factor influencing the achievement of negative excision margins in squamous cell carcinomas of the vulva, at the cost of more radical surgery.

Impact of age on tumor size in vulvar cancer: A multicenter study by the Francogyn group

Vulvar cancer is a rare pathology affecting mainly elderly women. This study aims to evaluate the impact of age on tumor size in vulvar cancer. This was a multicenter retrospective observational study carried out between January 1, 1998, and December 31, 2020, in patients operated on for vulvar cancer. Univariate analysis was performed according to patients' age ≥ or <65 years. Factors associated with tumor size found to be significant according to age were then included in a multiple linear regression model. Of the 382 patients included, there were 133 patients aged <65 years and 249 ≥ 65 years. Radical total vulvectomy surgeries were more frequently performed in women ≥65 years (n = 72 (28.9 %) versus n = 20 (15 %); p = 0.004). The median histological tumor size and interquartile range was 20 mm [13-29] in the <65 years and 30 mm [15-42] in patients ≥65 years (p = 0.001). Multiple linear regression showed that age ≥65 years had a regression coefficient of 7.15 95 % CI [2.32; 11.99] (p = 0.004), constituting a risk factor for larger histological tumour size. Patients aged ≥65 years old had a higher early complication rate (n = 150 (62 %) versus n = 56 (42.7 %), p = 0.001). They also had a greater risk of recurrence (HR = 1.89 (95%CI (1.24-2.89)), p = 0.003) with a worse overall survival (HR = 5.64 (95%CI (1.70-18.68)), p = 0.005). Age is a risk factor for larger tumor size, leading to more radical surgery and a greater risk of complications in already fragile patients, with a greater risk of recurrence and an impact on overall survival.

First external validity study of the Fagotti score in ovarian cancer

Abstract Epithelial ovarian cancer is mostly discovered at the stage of peritoneal carcinosis. Complete cytoreductive surgery improves overall survival. The Fagotti score is a predictive score of resectability based on peritoneal laparoscopic exploratory. Our aim was to study the inter-observer concordance in an external validation of the Fagotti score. An observational, prospective, multicenter study was conducted using the Francogyn research network. The primary outcome was inter-observer concordance of the Fagotti score. 15 patients in which an ovarian mass was discovered were included. For each patient, the first exploratory laparoscopy before any treatment/chemotherapy was recorded. This bank of 15 videos was subject to blind review accompanied by a Fagotti score rating by 11 gynecological surgeons specializing in oncology. A total of 165 blind reviews were performed. Inter-observer concordance was very good for the Fagotti score with an intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) of 0.83 [95% CI 0.71; 0.93]. Inter-observer concordance for the adjusted Fagotti score, which accounts for unexplorable areas with extensive carcinomatosis, resulted in an ICC of 0.64 [95% CI 0.46; 0.82]. According to the reviewers, the three least explorable parameters were mesentery involvement, stomach infiltration and liver damage. The ICC of the explorable Fagotti score, i.e. score with deletion of the parameters most often unexplored by laparoscopy, was 0.86 [0.75–0.94]. This study confirms the reproducibility of the Fagotti score during first assessment laparoscopies in cases of advanced ovarian cancer. The explorable Fagotti score has an equivalent or better inter-observer concordance than the Fagotti score.

Systematic literature review and meta-analysis of postoperative complications of surgical management of vulvar cancer: what is the impact of frailty factors?

Vulvar cancer surgery is associated with high rates of morbidity. Preventing or minimizing these morbidities is an important objective, as they impact on patients' quality of life, and are highly deleterious in frail, aged patients, who represent the majority of those affected by this disease. This systematic literature review and meta-analysis assesses post-operative complications in vulvar cancer surgery, and attempts to identify the impact of frailty factors. A Pubmed search was conducted to identify studies reporting data on complications of vulvar cancer surgery in frail patients, from January 2000 to April 2022, following the recommendations of the PRISMA, and registered in PROSPERO (CRD 42024503036). The evaluation criteria were: age, frailty, and complications. Statistical heterogeneity of results was assessed by graphical representations of confidence intervals (CI) on forest plot and by a Chi2 heterogeneity test. Frailty related to age > 70 years increases the risk of inguinal disunion (OR = 1.89, 95%CI [1.12-3.20]). Frailty (due to age and obesity) does not increase the risk of lymphocele. Frailty factors, such as obesity, are risk factors for inguinal cellulitis (OR = 1.86, 95%CI [1.12-3.08]), and diabetes is a risk factor for inguinal infection. This literature review and meta-analysis precludes drawing any significant clinical conclusion regarding the impact of frailty, in particular age-related frailty, on the occurrence of complications. This is due to different definitions of complications, a lack of precision in the data provided, the variety of surgical techniques performed, the absence of an age group or a frailty group.