The prognostic value of tumor budding in gastric adenocarcinomas: A cross-sectional study

Background: Tumor budding is a negative prognostic factor for many solid malignancies. We investigated the relationship between patients' clinico-pathological characteristics and tumor budding, as well as the effect of budding level on prognosis. Methods: In this retrospective, cross-sectional, and descriptive study at a tertiary university hospital, 104 patients with gastric adenocarcinoma were divided into two groups according to whether they had a high (< 10 buds) or low (< 10 buds) level of budding. The patients were retrospectively evaluated. Results: Sixty-two patients had a low level of budding and 42 had a high level of budding. The mean time from the first diagnosis to the last follow-up was significantly longer (P < 0.05) in the low-budding group (27 months) than in the high-budding group (17 months). As the T stage, N stage, grade, and size of the tumor increased, the proportion of patients with high budding was found to be significantly higher (P < 0.05). High tumor budding, an age of 60 or over at diagnosis, a low body mass index, high N stage, presence of lymphovascular invasion, and recurrence were associ-ated with overall survival. Conclusion: Our study supports that budding is a negative prognostic factor in gastric cancer. Copyright (c) 2023, Society of Gastrointestinal Intervention.