OBJECTIVE To identify clinicopathological characteristics as predictive factors for lymph node metastasis in submucosal gastric cancer, and in addi- tion to establish objective criteria as indications for endoscopic submucosal dissection (ESD). METHODS Data from 130 patients with submucosal gastric cancer were collected, and the relationship between their clinicopathological characteris- tics and the presence of lymph node metastasis was retrospectively analyzed by multivariate analysis. RESULTS In the multivariate logistic regression model, a tumor size of 2 cm or more and an undifferentiated histologic type were found to be inde- pendent risk clinicopathological characteristics for lymph node metastasis. Among 130 patients with submucosal carcinoma, no lymph node metastases were observed in 17 patients who showed neither of the two risk clinicopath- ological characteristics. Lymph node metastasis occurred in 61.1% (22/36) of the patients who had both risk clinicopathological characteristics. CONCLUSION A tumor size of 2 cm or more and an undifferentiated histologic type were significantly and independently related to lymph node metastasis in submucosal gastric cancer. It is rational for the paitients with neither of these two independent risk clinicopathological characteristics to undergo an ESD.
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