Outcome of patients with Gleason score 8 or higher prostate cancer following radical prostatectomy alone. 
We determine the effect of clinical and pathological variables on the outcome of patients with prostate cancer of Gleason scores 8 or greater treated with radical prostatectomy alone.  Between April 1987 and October 1998, 1,199 patients underwent radical retropubic prostatectomy.  We identified 188 patients assigned a Gleason score of 8 or higher in the prostatectomy specimen who did not receive any neoadjuvant or adjuvant therapy.  Median followup was 60 months (range 1 to 129).  Disease recurrence was defined as any detectable prostate specific antigen level 0.1 ng./ml.  or greater.  Of 188 patients 128 (68%) had no evidence of prostate cancer after a median followup of 60 months, while 60 (32%) demonstrated a detectable PSA level.  There were 58 (31%) patients with disease confined to the prostate with negative surgical margins while 108 (57%) had prostate cancer confined to the surgical specimen.  Positive surgical margin with extraprostatic extension was seen in 16 (9%) patients and seminal vesicle invasion was present in 40 (21%).  The 5 and 7-year disease-free survival rates for the entire cohort were 71% and 55%, respectively.  Patients with specimen confined disease had a significantly higher 5-year disease-free survival rate than those with nonspecimen confined disease (84% and 50%, p <0.0001).  On multivariate analysis pathological status of the surgical specimen was the most significant independent predictor of disease recurrence.  Age, ethnicity, clinical stage and preoperative PSA had no independent effect on disease recurrence.  Long-term disease-free survival can be expected in those patients with high grade prostate cancer whose disease is confined to the prostate and/or the surgical specimen.