Depth of invasion, tumor budding, and worst pattern of invasion: prognostic indicators in early-stage oral tongue cancer

Abstract

Background: Oral (mobile) tongue squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) is characterized by a highly variable prognosis in early-stage disease (T1/T2 N0M0). The ability to classify early oral tongue SCCs into low-risk and high-risk categories would represent a major advancement in their management.

Methods: Depth of invasion, tumor budding, histologic risk-assessment score (HRS), and cancer-associated fibroblast (CAF) density were studied in 233 cases of T1/T2 N0M0 oral tongue SCC managed in 5 university hospitals in Finland.

Results: Tumor budding (≥5 clusters at the invasive front of the tumor) and depth of invasion (≥4 mm) were associated with poor prognosis in patients with early oral tongue SCC (hazard ratio [HR], 2.04; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.17-3.55; HR, 2.55; 95% CI, 1.25-5.20, respectively) after multivariate analysis. The HRS and CAF density did not predict survival. However, high-risk worst pattern of invasion (WPOI), a component of HRS, was also an independent prognostic factor (HR, 4.47; 95% CI, 1.59-12.51).

Conclusion: Analyzing the depth of invasion, tumor budding, and/or WPOI in prognostication and treatment planning of T1/T2 N0M0 oral tongue SCC is recommended.

Keywords: cancer-associated fibroblast; depth of invasion; disease-specific mortality; histologic risk score; oral tongue squamous cell carcinoma; prognosis; tumor budding; worst pattern of invasion.