Published online Mar 26, 2023. doi: 10.12998/wjcc.v11.i9.1930
Peer-review started: November 28, 2022
First decision: January 14, 2023
Revised: January 29, 2023
Accepted: February 21, 2023
Article in press: February 21, 2023
Published online: March 26, 2023
Processing time: 108 Days and 19.4 Hours
Lymph node (LN) metastasis is the most common form of metastasis in gastric cancer (GC). The status and stage of LN metastasis are important indicators that reflect the progress of GC. The number of LN metastases is still the most effective index to evaluate the prognosis of patients in all stages of LN metastasis. Examined LN (ELN) count refers to the number of LNs harvested from specimens by curative gastrectomy for pathological examination. This review summarizes the factors that influence ELN count, including individual and tumor factors, intraoperative dissection factors, postoperative sorting factors, and pathological examination factors. Different ELN counts will lead to prognosis-related stage migration. Fine LN sorting and regional LN sorting are the two most important LN sorting technologies. The most direct and effective way to harvest a large number of LNs is for surgeons to perform in vitro fine LN sorting.
Core Tip: Examined lymph node (ELN) count refers to the number of lymph nodes harvested from specimens by curative gastrectomy for pathological examination. We herein discussed the factors influencing ELN count and their roles in stage migration and sorting methods.