Table 4. Univariate analysis of relapse-free survival by CTC positivity and common clinical variables.
| Parameter | Hazard ratio | 95% CI | P-value | Cox regression: P-value |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CTC (positive vs negative), n=82 | 4.72 | 1.52–14.66 | 0.007 | 0.003 |
| Age (<45 years vs >45 years), n=82 | 1.22 | 0.27–5.58 | 0.797 | 0.797 |
| Tumour size (⩾T2 vs T1), n=82a | 3.40 | 1.10–10.55 | 0.034 | 0.025 |
| Node stage (N+ vs N0), n=82a | 1.40 | 0.42–4.65 | 0.586 | 0.584 |
| Histological grade (grade 3 vs 1 and 2), n=82 | 1.19 | 0.32–4.39 | 0.798 | 0.798 |
| Hormone receptor negative vs positive, n=81 | 3.04 | 0.82–11.25 | 0.096 | 0.080 |
| HER2 positive vs negative, n=81 | 1.17 | 0.32–4.31 | 0.818 | 0.817 |
Abbreviations: CI=confidence interval; CTC-positive=positive circulating tumour cell status according to quadratic discriminant analysis (QDA) score; HER2=human epidermal growth factor receptor 2.
a
TNM 6 classification according to the Union Internationale Contre le Cancer criteria.
Significant P-values are shown in bold.