CORRELATION OF DEPTH OF INVASION OF INCISIONAL BIOPSY SPECIMEN WITH LYMPH NODE STATUS OF ORAL SQUAMOUS CELL CARCINOMA PATIENTS- A RETROSPECTIVE STUDY

Background: Depth of invasion of the tumour (DOI) is an important prognostic factors and elective neck dissection can be made based on the depth of invasion of the primary tumor. Aim of the present study is to scientifically analyse the correlation between DOI of incisional specimen and nodal status. Materials and methods: n=20 incisional biopsy specimens of oral squamous cell carcinoma cases were included and the histopathological depth of invasion and the lymph node status of the excision biopsy were assessed by two independent pathologists using Magcam vision software and transported to IBM-SPSS for statistical analysis. Result: Low to moderate depth of invasion was observed in 40% of the cases. Only 20% of the cases showed high(>6mm) depth of invasion. Metastasis was present only in 15% of the cases. The correlation between DOI and lymph node metastasis status was not statistically significant with p value of 0.071( Pearson Chi-square test). Conclusion: Extensive version of this preliminary study with increased sample size and proper sampling technique will help to analyse this lacuna more precisely. Predicting the possibility of nodal involvement from incisional biopsy depth of invasion can be a great advantage for the better surgical management and prognosis of the patient.