Prognostic value of a mandibular canal staging system for primary lesions in patients with lower gingival squamous cell carcinoma: a multicenter, retrospective study

The Union for International Cancer Control and American Joint Committee on Cancer tumor staging system is used globally for treatment planning. As it may be insufficient for tumor staging of lower gingival carcinomas, we proposed the mandibular canal tumor staging system. In this study, we aimed to compare the two systems for such tumor staging and to identify prognostic markers. This multicenter, retrospective study included patients with lower gingival squamous cell carcinoma who underwent radical surgery during 2001–2018. We compared survival rates (Kaplan–Meier estimator) and patient stratification according to the two systems. The proposed system yielded more balanced patient stratification than the existing system. Progression in the tumor grade according to the proposed system was associated with a poorer prognosis. The 5-year overall and disease-specific survival rates for the entire cohort were 74.9