To determine pathologic variables associated with disease free interval and overall survival of patients with stage IB1 cervical cancer who underwent radical hysterectomy and pelvic lymph node dissection.

The records of 91 patients with stage IB1 cervical carcinoma who underwent radical hysterectomy and pelvic lymphadenectomy from 1997 to 2003 at Gil Medical Center were reviewed retrospectively. Clinical and pathologic variables including tumor size, histologic type, involvement of resection margin, parametrium invasion, lymph node metastasis, lymph-vascular space invasion (LVSI), depth of invasion and age were analyzed by the Kaplan-Meier curves and the log-rank test. Independent prognostic factors were determined by Cox's proportional hazards model.

Univariate analysis revealed no significant differences in subgroups according to age, tumor size, histologic type and lymph-vascular space invasion (LVSI). However, significant differences in disease free interval were found in subgroups according to lymph node metastasis and depth of invasion. There were significant differences in overall survival in only subgroups according to lymph node metastasis. Multivariate analysis revealed that lymph node metastasis was the only independent significant prognostic factor.

These results show that lymph node metastasis was the only independent prognostic factor in stage IB1 cervical cancer managed surgically.