The prognostic role of lymphovascular invasion in urothelial-cell carcinoma of upper and lower urinary tract.

BACKGROUND: Carcinoma of the bladder represents the fourth most common cancer in men and the eighth most common malignancy in women in Europe and the United States. Prognostic factors for recurrence and survival are tumor stage and dimension, tumor grade and the presence of lymph node metastasis. We assess the impact and the role of lymphovascular invasion (LVI) on the prognosis of patients treated for lower and upper tract urothelial carcinoma by reviewing the literature curentable. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We performed a detailed review of the literature to assess the prognostic role of LVI assessed in histological specimens of urothelial cell carcinoma of the upper and lower urinary tract. RESULTS: We presented the definition of lymphovascular invasion in histological specimens of urothelial carcinoma. LVI in histological specimens was correlated significantly with increasing tumor stage and grade. Moreover, LVI is significantly correlated with earlier disease recurrence and a lower cancer-specific survival, and seems to be an independent predictor of recurrence-free survival on multivariate Cox analysis. CONCLUSION: LVI in histological specimens seems to have an important prognostic value for patients with urothelial cell carcinoma of the upper and lower urinary tract, and could be a useful tool for the urologist in choosing the best and most appropriate management during disease treatment and follow-up.