Long disease-free interval diminishes the prognostic value of primary tumor stage for patients with colorectal cancer liver metastases

Abstract Background It is assumed that the impact of primary tumor stage (PTS) on prognosis gradually weakens with increasing disease-free interval (DFI) from colorectal cancer resection to liver metastases. Methods Data from 733 patients undergoing hepatectomy in the Hepato-pancreato-biliary Surgery Department I of Peking University Cancer Hospital were retrospectively analyzed. Early and late metastases were defined as DFI ≤ and >12 months, respectively. Results In early metastases group, patients with T4 stage had a significantly worse recurrence-free survival (RFS) and overall survival (OS) than those with T1-3 stage (P = 0.002 and P  Discussion The impact of PTS on prognosis is diminished with increasing DFI and limited only to patients with early metastases.