Value of cardiophrenic angle lymph nodes for the diagnosis of colorectal peritoneal carcinomatosis.

Abstract

372 Background: The radiological diagnosis of peritoneal carcinomatosis (PC) is challenging. Metastases in the cardiophrenic angle lymph nodes (CPALN) have been anecdotally reported in patients with abdominopelvic malignancies. We aimed to assess whether CPALN detected by computed tomography (CT)-scan are associated with PC in patients with colorectal cancer (CRC). Methods: Between 2007 and 2010, 550 patients with CRC, including 165 (30%) with PC, underwent surgery with complete exploration of the peritoneal cavity in our center. We retrospectively reviewed preoperative CT-scans for the presence of CPALN, and assessed the association of CPALN with surgically confirmed PC by univariate and multivariate analyses. Results: CPALN were present in 123 (75%) of the 165 patients with PC, but absent in 263 (68%) of the 385 patients without PC (sensitivity (Se), 0.72; specificity (Sp), 0.68; positive predictive value (PPV), 0.49; negative PV (NPV), 0.85; odds ratio [OR], 3.3; p<0.001). The presence of CPALN was not correlated with the extent of PC, the primary tumor and lymph node status , or the presence, number, size and location of liver metastases. Among the 165 patients with PC, 99 (60%) had visible signs of PC (other than CPALN) on CT-scan; among the remaining 66 patients, CPALN were the only potential sign of CP in 41 (62%), leading to Se, Sp, PPV, and NPV in patients with no signs of CP (other than CPALN) on CT of 0.62, 0.68, 0.24, and 0.92, respectively. Conclusions: The detection of CPALN on CT may be of valuable help for the diagnosis of PC in patients with CRC.