Prognostic impact of hemoglobin levels on treatment outcome in patients with nasopharyngeal carcinoma treated with sequential chemoradiotherapy or radiotherapy alone

Can the prognosis of individual patients with nasopharyngeal carcinoma be predicted using a routine blood test at admission?

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE

We sought to determine the prognostic value of a pre-treatment peripheral blood signature and the peripheral blood signature-based nomogram for patients with non-metastatic nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC).

MATERIALS AND METHODS

We retrospectively collected 21 peripheral blood indicators from patients with NPC between 2004 and 2015. Data were randomly divided into a training and a validation set (ratio: 6:4). The peripheral blood signature was constructed based on candidate biomarkers using the least absolute shrinkage and selection operator Cox regression model. Multivariable logistic regression was applied to identify the independent risk factors of overall survival to build the nomogram. The predictive value of the peripheral blood nomogram was evaluated using time-dependent area under the curve, decision curve analysis, and calibration curve.

RESULTS

In total, 6668 patients were enrolled with 4000 and 2668 in the training and validation cohorts, respectively. Four peripheral blood indicators, (white blood cell count, lymphocyte percentage, haemoglobin, and mean platelet volume), were included to construct the peripheral blood signature. Patients were divided into low- and high-risk groups using an optimal cut-off value of - 1.71142. Patients in the high-risk group had significantly lower overall, distant metastasis-free, and progression-free survival than patients in the low-risk group in both cohorts (P < 0.05). We constructed and validated a peripheral blood signature-based nomogram in combination with five vital clinical characteristics, (age, sex, tumour stage, nodal stage, and pre-treatment Epstein-Barr virus DNA), which showed favourable performance.

CONCLUSION

Patients with NPC with different outcomes could be distinguished based on their peripheral blood signature score; the proposed peripheral blood signature-based nomogram offers individualised risk estimation.

Establishment of a prognostic nomogram for patients with locoregionally advanced nasopharyngeal carcinoma incorporating clinical characteristics and dynamic changes in hematological and inflammatory markers

Background

This study aims to investigate the prognostic value of changes in hematological and inflammatory markers during induction chemotherapy (IC) and concurrent chemo-radiation (CCRT), thus construct nomograms to predict progression free survival (PFS) of patients with locally advanced nasopharyngeal carcinoma (LANPC).

Methods

130 patients were included in this prospective analysis. Univariate and multivariate cox regression analyses were conducted to identify prognostic factors. Three multivariate analyses integrating different groups of variables were conducted independently. Concordance indexes (c-index), calibration plots and Kaplan-Meier curves were used to evaluate the nomograms. Bootstrap validation was performed to determine the accuracy of the nomogram using 1000 resamples. The performances of proposed nomograms and TNM staging system were compared to validate the prognostic value of hematological and inflammatory markers.

Results

Pretreatment gross tumor volume of nodal disease (GTVn), Δe/bHGB (hemoglobin count at end of treatment/baseline hemoglobin count), and stage were selected as predictors for 3-year PFS in first multivariate analysis of clinical factors. The second multivariate analysis of clinical factors and all hematological variables demonstrated that ΔminLYM (minimum lymphocyte count during CCRT/lymphocyte count post-IC), pretreatment GTVn and stage were associated with 3-year PFS. Final multivariate analysis, incorporating all clinical factors, hematological variables and inflammatory markers, identified the following prognostic factors: pretreatment GTVn, stage, ΔmaxPLR (maximum platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio (PLR) during CCRT/PLR post-IC), and ΔminPLT (minimum platelet count during CCRT/platelet count post-IC). Calibration plots showed agreement between the PFS predicted by the nomograms and actual PFS. Kaplan–Meier curves demonstrated that patients in the high-risk group had shorter PFS than those in the low-risk group (P ≤ 0.001). The c-indexes of the three nomograms for PFS were 0.742 (95% CI, 0.639-0.846), 0.766 (95% CI, 0.661-0.871) and 0.815 (95% CI,0.737-0.893) respectively, while c-index of current TNM staging system was 0.633 (95% CI, 0.531-0.736).

Conclusion

We developed and validated a nomogram for predicting PFS in patients with LANPC who received induction chemotherapy and concurrent chemo-radiation. Our study confirmed the prognostic value of dynamic changes in hematological and inflammatory markers. The proposed nomogram outperformed the current TNM staging system in predicting PFS, facilitating risk stratification and guiding individualized treatment plans.

Prognostic Relevance of Change in Body Mass Index in Patients With Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma Undergoing Volumetric Modulated Arc Therapy: A Retrospective Study

Objective

To assess the effect of pretreatment body mass index (BMI) and the extent of change in BMI (ΔBMI) during the treatment course on the treatment outcomes in patients with nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) receiving volumetric modulated arc therapy (VMAT).

Methods

Data pertaining to 498 consecutive NPC patients with stage I–IVA disease who received VMAT between January 2010 and November 2011 at a single center were retrospectively analyzed. Univariate Kaplan-Meier and multivariate Cox regression analyses were used to evaluate the prognostic significance of pretreatment BMI and ΔBMI. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis was used to determine the optimal cut-off point of ΔBMI.

Results

The 5-year loco-regional failure-free (L-FFR), distant failure-free survival (D-FFR), disease-free survival (DFS), and overall survival (OS) rates were 90.6%, 83.7%, 71.5% and 79.3%, respectively. The 5-year L-FFR, D-FFR, DFS, OS rates for NPC patients with ΔBMI ≤1 kg/m² vs ΔBMI >1 kg/m² were 92.3% vs 89.3% (P = .137), 90.9% vs 78.5% (P < .001), 80.4% vs 65.1% (P < .001), and 88.0% vs 73.0% (P < .001), respectively. ΔBMI >1 kg/m² was an independent predictor of D-FFR (P = .002), DFS (P = .002), and OS (P = .001).

Conclusions

ΔBMI during treatment course may have a significant impact on the prognosis of NPC patients receiving VMAT.

Nutritional outcomes after radiotherapy target volume reduction for nasopharyngeal cancer: a Phase III trial

Aim: This study aimed to assess the nutritional status of patients with locoregionally advanced nasopharyngeal cancer, for whom intensity-modulated radiotherapy (IMRT) was planned using their pre- or post-induction chemotherapy (IC) nasopharyngeal gross tumor volume. Materials & methods: 212 cases of stage III-IVb nasopharyngeal cancer were randomized into groups A (n = 97) and B (n = 115). IMRT was planned for groups A and B using pre-IC and post-IC images, respectively. Results: There was a significant decrease in the nutritional parameters of group B compared with those of group A during radiotherapy. Multivariate analysis indicated that the T stage and nasopharyngeal gross tumor volume IMRT-planning protocol were prognostic factors of poor nutritional status. Conclusion: Decreasing the IMRT target volume through IC can improve nutritional status.

Relationship between the nutritional status and antimicrobial protein levels with the periodontal condition in untreated head and neck cancer patients

Background:

Chronic periodontitis might be associated with oral premalignant lesions, tongue cancers, and other oral neoplasms, which is a foremost public health problem throughout the world. The nutritional status of the patient with cancer becomes very important for tolerating the treatment course as most of the newly diagnosed patients with head and neck cancer are malnourished before treatment begins. Antimicrobial proteins are also essential contributors to maintaining the balance between health and disease in this complex environment. Therefore the aim of this study was to determine whether an association exists between the measures of nutritional status and the levels of antimicrobial proteins with the periodontal condition in newly diagnosed, untreated head and neck cancer patients.

Materials and Methods:

A total of 50 patients newly diagnosed with head and neck carcinoma were included. Saliva and plasma samples were collected, together with clinical periodontal recordings. Nutritional status parameters consisted of body mass index, serum albumin, hemoglobin, and total lymphocyte count. Cystatin C and lysozyme were the antimicrobial proteins.

Results:

A logistic regression model showed that periodontal parameters were inversely related to their nutritional status; however, antimicrobial protein levels showed to be directly related to periodontal condition.

Conclusion:

This study suggests an association between periodontal disease, nutritional status parameters, and antimicrobial protein levels.

The development of a nomogram to predict post-radiation necrosis in nasopharyngeal carcinoma patients: a large-scale cohort study

Objective: This study aimed to establish a nomogram to predict the risk of post-radiation necrosis in nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) patients.

Background: This study was performed to identify influencing factors for developing post-radiation necrosis, and to establish an effective nomogram model to predict individual risks in NPC patients.

Methods: 7144 NPC patients receiving radical radiotherapy from 2007 to 2012 were involved in the study, and 207 of them developed nasopharyngeal necrosis (NPN). The clinical characteristics and baseline laboratory results were collected and analyzed. Independent predictive factors were selected using the Cox proportional model and incorporated into the nomogram. The receiver operating characteristic curve and the calibration curve were used to verify discrimination and calibration.

Results: The experience of re-irradiation contributed most to the occurrence of NPN (HR, 15.56, 95% CI 10.84–22.35, p<0.001). Clinical factors including age, pathology type, history of diabetes, and original T stage were independent predictors of NPN. Factors reflecting patients’ baseline nutritional and inflammatory status such as hemoglobin, albumin, and C-reactive protein were also significantly associated with the development of NPN. With all independent predictive factors incorporated, a nomogram was generated, and it showed excellent discrimination and calibration.

Conclusion: This study was the first large-scale cohort study focusing on the development of NPN and established a nomogram to predict its occurrence based on the clinical and laboratory indicators. The nomogram demonstrated good discriminative capacity and satisfactory agreement, which would offer valuable clues for clinicians to distinguish the high-risk NPN population and maintain close surveillance.

Do all patients with advanced N-stage nasopharyngeal carcinoma benefit from the addition of induction chemotherapy to concurrent chemoradiotherapy?

Background

The aim of this study was to evaluate the benefits from the addition of induction chemotherapy (IC) to concurrent chemoradiotherapy (CCRT) in N2-3 nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC).

Methods

A total of 3089 patients with nonmetastatic NPC, staged as N2-3 were retrospectively reviewed. IC contained cisplatin (80 mg/m²) with 5-fluorouracil (800 mg/m²/day over 120 h), or cisplatin (80 mg/m²) with docetaxel (80 mg/m²), or cisplatin (60 mg/m²) with 5-fluorouracil (600 mg/m² over 120 h), and docetaxel (60 mg/m²) administered at 3-week intervals for two or three cycles. Concurrent chemotherapy consisted of cisplatin (80 or 100 mg/m²) given in weeks 1, 4, and 7 of radiotherapy, or cisplatin (40 mg/m²) given weekly during radiotherapy. Overall, three well-matched risk groups (low, intermediate, and high risk) were created using propensity score matching, and IC plus CCRT was compared with CCRT in each risk group. Our primary endpoint was distant metastasis-free survival (DMFS).

Results

A nomogram for DMFS was established with good prognostic accuracy (C-index, 0.69; 95% confidence interval, 0.64-0.73). The survival curves for low, intermediate, and high-risk groups stratified by the nomogram were significantly different between all three risk groups, with corresponding 5-year DMFS rates of 90.7%, 79.4%, and 64.9%, respectively (p < 0.001). IC plus CCRT was significantly associated with superior DMFS as compared with CCRT alone (69.5% versus 56.7%, p = 0.004) in the high-risk group. However, no significant difference between IC plus CCRT and CCRT was observed (p = 0.831 and 0.608, respectively) in the intermediate and low-risk groups.

Conclusions

Our findings can help accurately guide the treatment of individual patients with advanced N-stage NPC.

Baseline hemoglobin <11.0 g/dL has stronger prognostic value than anemia status in nasopharynx cancers treated with chemoradiotherapy

BACKGROUND

To retrospectively investigate the influence of pretreatment anemia and hemoglobin levels on the survival of nasopharyngeal carcinoma patients treated with concurrent chemoradiotherapy (C-CRT).

METHODS

A total of 149 nasopharyngeal carcinoma patients who received C-CRT were included. All patients had received 70 Gy to the primary tumor plus the involved lymph nodes, and 59.4 Gy and 54 Gy to the intermediate- and low-risk neck regions concurrent with 1-3 cycles of cisplatin. Patients were dichotomized into non-anemic and anemic (hemoglobin <12 g/dL (women) or <13 g/dL (men)) groups according to their pre-treatment hemoglobin measures. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis was utilized for accessibility of a pre-treatment hemoglobin cut-off that impacts outcomes. Potential interactions between baseline anemia status and hemoglobin measures and overall survival, locoregional progression-free survival (LRPFS), and progression-free survival were assessed.

RESULTS

Anemia was evident in 36 patients (24.1%), which was related to significantly shorter overall survival (P=0.007), LRPFS (P<0.021), and progression-free survival (P=0.003) times; all three endpoints retained significance in multivariate analyses (P<0.05, for each). A baseline hemoglobin value of 11.0 g/dL exhibited significant association with outcomes in ROC curve analysis: hemoglobin <11.0 g/dL (N=26) was linked with shorter median overall survival (P<0.001), LRPFS (P=0.004), and progression-free survival (P<0.001) times, which also retained significance for all three endpoints in multivariate analyses and suggested a stronger prognostic worth for the hemoglobin <11.0 g/dL cut-off value than the anemia status.

CONCLUSION

Pre-C-CRT hemoglobin <11.0 g/dL has a stronger prognostic worth than the anemia status with regard to LRPFS, progression-free survival, and overall survival for nasopharyngeal carcinoma patients.

Predictive value of dynamic change of haemoglobin levels during therapy on treatment outcomes in patients with Enneking stage IIB extremity osteosarcoma

Background

We aimed to investigate the roles of hemoglobin (Hb) concentrations and dynamic change during treatment on outcomes of patients with extremity osteosarcoma.

Methods

We retrospectively analysed 133 patients with Enneking stage IIB extremity osteosarcoma who underwent standard treatments, including univariate and multivariate analyses of patient charateritics, Hb concentrations and changes during pretreatment, neoadjuvant, adjuvant chemotherapy, and decreased Hb levels (ΔHb) to assess their prognostic value in 5-year overall survival (OS) and lung metastasis-free survival (LMFS).

Results

Five-year OS or LMFS were similar between patients who were anaemic and non-anaemic during pretreatment, neoadjuvant or adjuvant chemotherapy. Patients with continuously decreasing Hb had lower 5-year OS (52.3%) than those without continuous Hb decrease (68.5%, P = 0.04). Patients with ΔHb > 7.6 g/L had lower 5-year OS (57.5%) than those with ΔHb ≤7.6 g/L (75.8%, P = 0.04). However, continuous Hb decrease had no prognostic effect on 5-year LMFS. Subgroup analyses showed that patients who were anaemic during pretreatment, neoadjuvant, or adjuvant chemotherapy with ΔHb ≤7.6 g/L had better outcomes than those with ΔHb > 7.6 g/L (P < 0.05, for both).

Conclusion

Dynamic Hb decrease and ΔHb > 7.6 predicted poor5-year OS in patients with Enneking stage IIB extremity osteosarcoma. Attempts to correct anaemia and their effects on outcomes for osteosarcoma patients should be investigated in future trials.

Combined prognostic value of pretreatment anemia and cervical node necrosis in patients with nasopharyngeal carcinoma receiving intensity-modulated radiotherapy: A large-scale retrospective study

This study investigated the combined prognostic value of pretreatment anemia and cervical node necrosis (CNN) in patients with nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC). Retrospective review of 1302 patients with newly diagnosed nonmetastatic NPC treated with intensity-modulated radiotherapy (IMRT) ± chemotherapy. Patients were classified into four groups according to anemia and CNN status. Survival was compared using the log-rank test. Independent prognostic factors were identified using the Cox proportional hazards model. The primary end-point was overall survival (OS); secondary end-points were disease-free survival (DFS), locoregional relapse-free survival (LRRFS), and distant metastasis-free survival (DMFS). Pretreatment anemia was an independent, adverse prognostic factor for DMFS; pretreatment CNN was an independent adverse prognostic factor for all end-points. Five-year survival for non-anemia and non-CNN, anemia, CNN, and anemia and CNN groups were: OS (93.1%, 87.2%, 82.9%, 76.3%, P < 0.001), DFS (87.0%, 84.0%, 73.9%, 64.6%, P < 0.001), DMFS (94.1%, 92.1%, 82.4%, 72.5%, P < 0.001), and LRRFS (92.8%, 92.4%, 88.7%, 84.0%, P = 0.012). The non-anemia and non-CNN group had best survival outcomes; anemia and CNN group, the poorest. Multivariate analysis demonstrated combined anemia and CNN was an independent prognostic factor for OS, DFS, DMFS, and LRRFS (P < 0.05). The combination of anemia and CNN is an independent adverse prognostic factor in patients with NPC treated using IMRT ± chemotherapy. Assessment of pretreatment anemia and CNN improved risk stratification, especially for patients with anemia and CNN who have poorest prognosis. This study may aid the design of individualized treatment plans to improve treatment outcomes.

Prognostic stratification of patients with metastatic nasopharyngeal carcinoma using a clinical and biochemical scoring system

PURPOSE

Metastatic nasopharyngeal cancer (NPC) is known to have poor survival outcomes. Clinical and biochemical parameters may impact survival outcomes among patients with metastatic NPC and may be used for prognostication.

METHODS

One-hundred and fifty-eight patients with metastatic NPC treated at a single tertiary institution were analyzed retrospectively. Multivariate analysis was carried out on patients who were given disease control treatment (n = 135). A numerical score derived from the regression coefficients of each identified independent variable was used to create prognostic groups (PG). A p value of less than 0.05 was considered significant.

RESULTS

Independent negative prognostic factors included ECOG status >1, LDH level >580 U/L, hemoglobin level <12.0 g/dL and having more than one metastatic organ involvement. Three PGs were obtained: low risk (total score = 0), intermediate risk (1-2) and high risk (3-4). Median survivals of the 3 groups (low, intermediate and high risk) were 57.1, 18.1 and 8.0 months for the three different risk groups, respectively (p < 0.001).

CONCLUSION

Risk stratification of patients with metastatic nasopharyngeal cancer is possible using a prognostic scoring system based on clinical and biochemical parameters. Patients with low-risk score may achieve good metastatic survival and may benefit from additional therapy for disease control.

A retrospective study of 606 cases of nasopharyngeal carcinoma with or without oropharyngeal candidiasis during radiotherapy

Background

To evaluate the clinical characteristics, treatment-related toxicities and survival in patients with nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) with or without oropharyngealcandidiasis (OPC) during radiotherapy.

Methods

The current study was conducted with NPC patients undergoing radiotherapy at Sun Yat-Sen University Cancer Center between June 2011 and May 2012. A clinical diagnosis of candidiasis was determined on the basis of a positive potassium hydroxide (KOH) test and the presence of pseudomembranous (white) form of candidal overgrowth. The Cox proportional hazard regression model was used to test the association of OPC and related survival rates.

Results

Compared with the non-OPC group, the OPC group had significantly increased occurrence rates of grade 3–4 mucositis (14.5% vs. 7.4%, P = 0.049), anaemia (11.3% vs. 4.4%, P = 0.020), hepatotoxicity (4.8% vs. 1.1%, P = 0.021) and critical weight loss (85.5% vs. 56.6%, P<0.001) during radiotherapy. The OPC group had a significantly lower disease-free survival (DFS) (70.9% vs. 82.6%, P = 0.012), mainly as a result of a reduction in locoregional relapse-free survival (LRFS) (87.0%vs. 94.9%, P = 0.025). After stratification by T stage, the 5-year DFS in T3-4 patients were 82.0% and 68.8% in non-OPC and OPC groups, respectively (P = 0.022). Multivariate analyses indicated that OPC was a prognostic factor for LRFS and DFS.

Conclusions

OPC during radiotherapy may worsen the nutritional status of NPC patients according to weight loss and anaemia, leading to a negative impact on 5-year locoregional relapse-free survival and disease-specific survival. Further investigations are needed to explore whether prevention and treatment of OPC during radiotherapy will be useful.

Radiomics Features of Multiparametric MRI as Novel Prognostic Factors in Advanced Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma

Purpose: To identify MRI-based radiomics as prognostic factors in patients with advanced nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC).Experimental Design: One-hundred and eighteen patients (training cohort: n = 88; validation cohort: n = 30) with advanced NPC were enrolled. A total of 970 radiomics features were extracted from T2-weighted (T2-w) and contrast-enhanced T1-weighted (CET1-w) MRI. Least absolute shrinkage and selection operator (LASSO) regression was applied to select features for progression-free survival (PFS) nomograms. Nomogram discrimination and calibration were evaluated. Associations between radiomics features and clinical data were investigated using heatmaps.Results: The radiomics signatures were significantly associated with PFS. A radiomics signature derived from joint CET1-w and T2-w images showed better prognostic performance than signatures derived from CET1-w or T2-w images alone. One radiomics nomogram combined a radiomics signature from joint CET1-w and T2-w images with the TNM staging system. This nomogram showed a significant improvement over the TNM staging system in terms of evaluating PFS in the training cohort (C-index, 0.761 vs. 0.514; P < 2.68 × 10^-9). Another radiomics nomogram integrated the radiomics signature with all clinical data, and thereby outperformed a nomogram based on clinical data alone (C-index, 0.776 vs. 0.649; P < 1.60 × 10^-7). Calibration curves showed good agreement. Findings were confirmed in the validation cohort. Heatmaps revealed associations between radiomics features and tumor stages.Conclusions: Multiparametric MRI-based radiomics nomograms provided improved prognostic ability in advanced NPC. These results provide an illustrative example of precision medicine and may affect treatment strategies. Clin Cancer Res; 23(15); 4259-69. ©2017 AACR.

Revalidation of a prognostic score model based on complete blood count for nasopharyngeal carcinoma through a prospective study

OBJECTIVE

In our previous work, we incorporated complete blood count (CBC) into TNM stage to develop a new prognostic score model, which was validated to improve prediction efficiency of TNM stage for nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC). The purpose of this study was to revalidate the accuracy of the model, and its superiority to TNM stage, through data from a prospective study.

METHODS

CBC of 249 eligible patients from the 863 Program No. 2006AA02Z4B4 was evaluated. Prognostic index (PI) of each patient was calculated according to the score model. Then they were divided by the PI into three categories: the low-, intermediate-and high-risk patients. The 5-year disease-specific survival (DSS) of the three categories was compared by a log-rank test. The model and TNM stage (7th edition) were compared on efficiency for predicting the 5-year DSS, through comparison of the area under curve (AUC) of their receiver-operating characteristic curves.

RESULTS

The 5-year DSS of the low-, intermediate-and high-risk patients were 96.0%, 79.1% and 62.2%, respectively. The low-and intermediate-risk patients had better DSS than the high-risk patients (P<0.001 and P<0.005, respectively). And there was a trend of better DSS in the low-risk patients, compared with the intermediate-risk patients (P=0.049). The AUC of the model was larger than that of TNM stage (0.726 vs. 0.661, P=0.023).

CONCLUSIONS

A CBC-based prognostic score model was revalidated to be accurate and superior to TNM stage on predicting 5-year DSS of NPC.

The effects of hemoglobin levels and their interactions with cigarette smoking on survival in nasopharyngeal carcinoma patients

There is very little published information regarding the prognostic value of hemoglobin (Hb) levels combined with smoking on the survival of patients with nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC), and the interactions between them remain unclear. A total of 2440 NPC patients were confirmed, and multivariate analysis was performed to identify valuable prognostic Hb levels in the entire population and in the cohort of smokers. The survival differences were compared using log‐rank tests. The multiplicative and additive interactions were assessed using Cox regression and a Microsoft Word Excel spreadsheet. Postradiotherapy (RT) Hb was an independent prognostic factor for overall survival (OS) (HR = 0.797; P = 0.006), failure‐free survival (FFS) (HR=0.811; P = 0.010), and loco‐regional failure‐free survival (LR‐FFS) (HR = 0.725; P = 0.000). In the cohort of smokers, pack‐years was also an independent predictor of OS (HR = 0.673; P < 0.001) and FFS (HR = 0.681; P < 0.001), LR‐FFS (HR = 0.663; P = 0.001). A significant positive additive effect was found for the interaction between low post‐RT Hb and high SI on OS, with RERI = 5.616, AP = 0.665, and S = 4.078. Stratified analyses demonstrated that heavy smokers with low post‐RT Hb had HRs of 2.295 (P < 0.001) for death, 2.222 (P < 0.001) for disease failure, and 2.267 (P < 0.001) loco‐regional recurrence compared with light smokers with high post‐RT Hb levels, and post‐RT Hb level is an important predictor of survival in patients with NPC. The positive interaction between post‐RT Hb level and pack‐years contributes to the elevated risk of poor survival. Oncologists should devote particular attention to heavy smokers with low post‐RT Hb levels in the future.

Pretreatment anemia and survival in nasopharyngeal carcinoma

Due to the low incidence of pretreatment anemia in nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC), the true prognostic impact of pretreatment anemia may be underestimated before. We retrospectively analyzed the association of pretreatment anemia with disease-specific survival (DSS), distant-metastasis-free survival (DMFS), and locoregional-relapse-free survival (LRFS) by Cox regression in a cohort of 5830 patients, stratifying by midtreatment anemia, smoking, body mass index (BMI), etc. Pretreatment anemia was significantly associated with adverse DSS (hazard ratio (HR) = 2.15, 95 % confidence interval (CI) 1.62-2.85, P < 0.001) and DMFS (HR = 1.53, 95 % CI 1.08-2.17, P = 0.018), comparing to patients with normal hemoglobin, after adjusting for covariates. Moreover, the association with DSS remained unchanged regardless of smoking status and clinical stage, whereas it was limited in the subgroups of above 45 years, male sex, and BMI <25 kg/m(2). With restriction to midtreatment anemic patients, pretreatment anemia was still strongly correlated with inferior DSS and DMFS. This study, in the largest reported cohort, is the first to show the adverse prognostic impact of pretreatment anemia on DSS and DMFS in NPC.

Is Hemoglobin Level in Patients with Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma Still a Significant Prognostic Factor in the Era of Intensity-Modulated Radiotherapy Technology?

BACKGROUND

Hemoglobin (Hb) levels are regarded as an important determinant of outcome in a number of cancers treated with radiotherapy. However, for patients treated with intensity modulated radiotherapy (IMRT), information regarding the prognostic value of hemoglobin level is scarce.

PATIENTS AND METHODS

A total of 650 patients with nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC), enrolled between May, 2005, and November, 2012, were included in this study. The prognostic significance of hemoglobin level (anemia or no-anemia) at three different time points was investigated, including before treatment, during treatment and at the last week of treatment. Univariate and multivariate analyses were conducted using the log-rank test and the Cox proportional hazards model, respectively.

RESULTS

The 5-year OS (overall survival) rate of patients who were anemia and no-anemia before treatment were 89.1%, and 80.7% (P = 0.01), respectively. The 5-year DMFS (distant metastasis-free survival) rate of patients who were anemia and no-anemia before treatment were 88.9%, and 78.2% (P = 0.01), respectively. The 5-year OS rate of patients who were anemia and no-anemia during treatment were 91.7% and 83.3% (P = 0.004). According to multivariate analysis, the pre-treatment Hb level predicted a decreased DMFS (P = 0.007, HR = 2.555, 95% CI1.294-5.046). Besides, the mid-treatment Hb level predicted a decreased OS (P = 0.013, HR = 2.333, 95% CI1.199-4.541).

CONCLUSIONS

Hemoglobin level is a useful prognostic factor in NPC patients receiving IMRT. It is important to control the level of hemoglobin both before and during chemoradiotherapy.

Evaluation of effect of body mass index and weight loss on survival of patients with nasopharyngeal carcinoma treated with intensity-modulated radiation therapy

BACKGROUND

Previous studies report body-mass index (BMI) and percent weight loss (WL) to have prognostic significance when treating patients with nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC). However, most of these investigations studied patients treated using different radiotherapeutic techniques. We evaluated the predictive effect of these two nutrition-related measurements on therapeutic outcome in NPC patients who only received intensity-modulated radiation therapy (IMRT) as part of their total treatment program.

METHODS

We retrospectively studied NPC patients treated with IMRT from January 2006 to February 2012. Cox proportional hazards was used to test the association of pretreatment BMI (<23 kg/m(2) vs. ≥23 kg/m(2)) and percent weight loss (≥5 % vs. <5 %) during therapy and related survival rates while controlling for various potential confounders.

RESULTS

Eighty-one (34 %) of the 238 patients had BMIs ≥23 kg/m(2) at pretreatment and 150 (63 %) had significant (≥5 %) weight loss. Median follow-up time was 41.71 months; median radiotherapy was 7.46 ± 0.77 weeks. Those with BMIs ≥23 kg/m(2) did not have a better 3-year overall survival (p = 0.672), 3-year disease specific survival (p = 0.341), 3-year locoregional free survival (p = 0.281), or 3-year distant metastatic free survival (p = 0.134). Those with significant WL (≥5 %) did not have worse 3-year clinical endpoints, even after stratifying magnitude of weight loss by BMI category. In sensitivity test, the adjusted hazard ratio remained statistically insignificant using different cutoffs for BMIs and percent weight loss.

CONCLUSIONS

This study found no significant relationship between BMI and percent weight loss on survival of NPC patients receiving IMRT based therapy. Further studies might want to consider other nutrition related factors as prognostic indicators when studying the correlate between malnutrition and survival in this population.

Significant prognostic impact of chemoradiotherapy-induced hemoglobin decrease on treatment outcomes of nasopharyngeal carcinoma

Purpose: To investigate prognostic impact of chemoradiotherapy-induced hemoglobin (Hb) decrease on treatment outcomes of endemic nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC).

Materials and Methods: Eight hundred and fifteen non-metastatic NPC, receiving neoadjuvant chemotherapy followed by radiotherapy (NACT+RT group) or concomitant chemoradiotherapy (CCRT group), were enrolled in this study, who were regrouped according to pre-radiotherapy Hb (pre-RT Hb), post-radiotherapy Hb (post-RT Hb) and individual Hb decrease through radiotherapy or CCRT (△Hb), respectively. Survival curves were estimated using Kaplan-Meier method and compared by log-rank test. Multivariate analysis was performed using the COX proportional hazard model and binary logistic regression model.

Results: A poorer 5-year disease-free survival (DFS) was observed when pre-RT Hb<130.00 g/L. However, post-RT Hb<130.00 g/L was associated with significantly poorer 5-year locoregional recurrence-free survival (LRFS) (P=0.010) and disease specific survival (DSS) (P=0.008). Multivariate analysis with the COX proportional hazard model identified post-RT Hb<130.00 g/L as an independent negative prognostic factor for both LRFS (hazard ratio [HR], 1.896; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.158-3.106; P=0.011) and DSS (HR, 1.767; 95% CI, 1.152-2.711; P=0.009). Similarly, △Hb <-15.00 g/L also predicted poorer 5-year LRFS (P=0.024) and DSS (P=0.015), which was confirmed in multivariate analysis as an independent adverse prognostic factor for LRFS (HR, 1.586; 95% CI, 1.058-2.377; P=0.026) and DSS (HR, 1.556; 95% CI, 1.087-2.227; P=0.016), respectively. Multivariate analysis with binary logistic regression model indicated that CCRT was a significantly independent predictor for post-RT Hb <130.00 g/L and △Hb < -15.00 g/L.

Conclusions: Chemoradiotherapy-induced decreased Hb levels have negative influence on locoregional control and survival, and might counteract the benefit of neoadjuvant/concomitant chemotherapy. Further studies on supportive care to maintain sufficient Hb level during chemo-radiotherapy are warranted.

Pretreatment body mass index as an independent prognostic factor in patients with locoregionally advanced nasopharyngeal carcinoma treated with chemoradiotherapy: findings from a randomised trial

OBJECTIVE

To investigate the relationship between the pretreatment body mass index (BMI) and the clinical outcomes in patients with locoregionally advanced nasopharyngeal carcinoma treated with combination of chemotherapy and radiotherapy.

METHODS

From August 2002 to April 2005, 400 patients with stage III or stage IVa nasopharyngeal carcinoma were recruited for a randomised clinical trial of induction chemotherapy combined with radiotherapy or concurrent chemoradiotherapy. The patients were divided into four groups of underweight (BMI<18.5kg/m(2)), normal weight (BMI 18.5-22.9kg/m(2)), overweight (BMI 23.0-27.4kg/m(2)) or obese (BMI≥27.5kg/m(2)) according to the World Health Organization classifications for Asian populations. The differences in the long-term survival, of these four BMI groups were analysed.

RESULTS

The 5-year failure-free survival rates for the underweight, normal weight, overweight and obese groups were 44%, 61%, 68% and 73%, respectively (p=0.014), and the 5-year overall survival rates were 51%, 68%, 80% and 72% (p=0.001), respectively. BMI was a strongly favoured prognostic factor of overall survival and failure-free survival in a Cox regression model.

CONCLUSIONS

Pretreatment body mass index was a simple, reliable independent prognostic factor for patients with locoregionally advanced nasopharyngeal carcinoma treated with chemoradiotherapy.

Long term outcomes and prognostic factors of n0 stage nasopharyngeal carcinoma: a single institutional experience with 610 patients

Treatment responses of N0 stage nasopharyngeal carcinoma were firstly analyzed comprehensively to evaluate long term outcomes of patients and identify prognostic factors. A total of 610 patients with N0 NPC, undergoing definitive radiotherapy to their primary lesion and prophylactic radiation to upper neck, were reviewed retrospectively. Concomitant chemotherapy was administrated to 65 out of the 610. Survival rates of the patients were calculated using the Kaplan-Meier method and compared by log-rank test. Prognostic factors were identified by the Cox regression model. The study revealed the 5-year and 10-year overall, disease-free, disease-specific, local failure-free, regional failure-free, locoregional failure-free and distant metastasis-free survival rates to be 78.7% and 66.8%, 68.8% and 55.8%, 79.9% and 70.4%, 81.2% and 72.5%, 95.8% and 91.8%, 78.3% and 68.5%, 88.5% and 85.5%, respectively. There were 192 patients experiencing failure (31.5%) after radiotherapy or chemoradiotherapy. Of these, local recurrence, regional relapse and distant metastases as the first event of failure occurred in 100 (100/610, 16.4%), 15(15/610, 2.5%) and 52 (52/610, 8.5%), respectively. Multivariate analysis showed that T stage was the only independent prognostic factor for patients with N0 NPC (P=0.000). Late T stage (P=0.000), male (P=0.039) and anemia (P=0.007) were independently unfavorable factors predicting disease-free survival. After treatment, satisfactory outcome wasgenerally achieved in patients with N0 NPC. Local recurrence represented the predominant mode of treatment failure, while T stage was the only independent prognostic factor for overall survival. Late T stage, male gender, and anemia independently predicted lower possibility of the disease-free survival.

Does the prognosis of nasopharyngeal cancer differ among endemic and non-endemic regions?

CONCLUSION

The survival rates and prognostic factors for nasopharyngeal cancer (NPC) were found to be similar to the published series from endemic regions.

OBJECTIVES

The purpose of this retrospective study was to evaluate treatment outcome and prognostic factors of NPC patients treated with radiotherapy or chemoradiotherapy in a non-endemic region.

METHODS

We analyzed clinical characteristics, treatment outcome, and prognostic factors of NPC patients in a non-endemic region, and compared our institution's results with the published literature including a similar patient population from endemic and non-endemic regions. Among 248 NPC patients, 71 (28.6%) were female and 177 (71.4%) were male with a median age of 48 years.

RESULTS

Within a median 59 months (range 22-178) of follow-up, local recurrence developed in 22 (8.9%), regional recurrence in 2 (0.8%), locoregional recurrence in 5 (2%), distant metastases in 21 (8.5%), and both locoregional recurrence and distant metastases in 8 (3.2%) patients. Five-year locoregional control (LRC), disease-free survival (DFS), disease-specific survival (DSS), and overall survival (OS) rates were 83.7%, 73%, 78.5%, and 71.1%, respectively. In multivariate analysis for LRC, cranial nerve involvement (CNI) (p = 0.009) and tumor response (p = 0.004); for DFS, age (p = 0.003), CNI (p = 0.02), AJCC T classification (p = 0.05), and tumor response (p = 0.01); for DSS, age (p = 0.003), CNI (p = 0.04), AJCC T classification (p = 0.04), and tumor response (p = 0.01); for OS, age (p < 0.001), AJCC T classification (p = 0.005), and tumor response (p < 0.001) were significant prognostic factors.

Involvement of difference in decrease of hemoglobin level in poor prognosis of Stage I and II nasopharyngeal carcinoma: implication in outcome of radiotherapy

PURPOSE

To investigate the effect of hemoglobin (Hb) concentration and the difference in its decrease during treatment on outcome of radiotherapy (RT) alone for patients with Stage I and II nasopharyngeal carcinoma.

METHODS AND MATERIALS

A total of 572 patients with Stage I-II nasopharyngeal carcinoma with RT alone between January 2001 and December 2004 were retrospectively analyzed. Patient characteristics, tumor variables, and Hb level, including pre-RT Hb, mid-RT Hb, and dynamic change of Hb between pre- and post- RT and its difference in decrease (▵Hb) were subjected to univariate and multivariable analysis to identify factors that predict disease-specific survival (DSS), local regional recurrence-free survival (LRFS), and metastases-free survival (MFS).

RESULTS

The 5-year DSS was poorer in the Hb continuous decrease group than in the Hb noncontinuous decrease group (84% vs. 89%; p = 0.008). There was poorer 5-year DSS in patients with ▵Hb of >11.5 g/L than in those with ▵Hb of ≤11.5 g/L (82% vs. 89%; p = 0.001), and poorer LRFS (79% vs. 83%; p = 0.035). Univariate and multivariate analysis showed that Hb decrease difference with greater than 11.5 g/L was an independent prognostic factor for DSS and LRFS.

CONCLUSIONS

The difference in decrease of Hb level during the course of radiation treatment appeared as a poor prognostic factor in Stage I and II nasopharyngeal carcinoma patients.

Factors associated with overall survival in 1706 patients with nasopharyngeal carcinoma: significance of intensive neoadjuvant chemotherapy and radiation break

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE

To exam factors associated with overall survival (OS) in patients with nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC).

MATERIALS AND METHODS

This study is a retrospective study of a total of 1706 consecutive NPC patients from a single institution between January 1995 and December 1998. One thousand eighty-one patients were treated with radiotherapy (RT) alone and 625 with an intensive course of neoadjuvant chemotherapy followed by RT. Patient, tumor and treatment factors were analyzed for their significance on 5-year overall survival (OS).

RESULTS

Younger age, female gender, absence of anemia pre-RT, early tumor stage, interruption of RT, and neoadjuvant chemotherapy were significantly associated with survival under multivariate analysis (all P<0.05). The 5-year OS rates were 100%, 75.9% (95%CI 71.6-80.2%), 66.5% (95%CI 62.8-70.2%), and 49.3% (95%CI 45.0-53.6%) for stage I, II, III, and IV (P<0.05); 68.9% (95%CI 66.2-71.5%) and 63.7% (95%CI 61.5-65.8%), for patients treated with or without neoadjuvant chemotherapy (P=0.0051), and 51.7% (95%CI 45.0-58.4%) and 69.5% (95%CI 67.2-71.7%) for patients with or without treatment break (P<0.0001), respectively.

CONCLUSION

Intensive neoadjuvant chemotherapy and absence of radiation break seem to be favorable factors associated with long-term survival in patients with NPC.

Anemia correction in malignancy management: threat or opportunity?

OBJECTIVES

The presence of anemia and/or hypoxia in cancer patients have both been correlated with worse outcomes. While some retrospective data suggest an improvement in outcomes in cervical cancer patients whose anemia has been corrected, the critical level to which hemoglobin should be raised and the issue of whether raising hemoglobin translates into a survival advantage remain controversial. This debate has more recently expanded to concerns over how we raise hemoglobin, with 2 recent randomized trials suggesting impaired survival outcomes in the groups who received poietic proteins to correct hemoglobin levels to normal and above values.

METHODS

A comprehensive literature search was performed utilizing combinations of the key search words anemia, hypoxia, radiotherapy, HIF-1alpha, angiogenesis, and erythropoietin.

RESULTS

The preponderance of evidence suggest a correlation between both anemia and worse outcome as well as hypoxia and worse outcome; however the relationship between anemia and hypoxia remains complex. A critical review of molecular changes associated with hypoxia that drive the molecular process, anemia correction and the data on the use of poietic proteins, and a review of future directions of research which focus on the opportunity of therapies correcting hypoxia or hypoxia-relevant targets is also presented.

CONCLUSIONS

Anemia and hypoxia remain biologically plausible targets for improving therapy. The potential benefit of raising hemoglobin will depend on whether anemia can influence treatment resistance and whether anemia plays a reversible role in driving the molecular milieu contributing to malignant clonogen survival and dissemination.

The role of haemoglobin level in predicting the response to first-line chemotherapy in advanced colorectal cancer patients

The purpose of the study was to evaluate the influence of baseline haemoglobin level in predicting response to 5-fluorouracil (5FU)-based first-line chemotherapy in advanced colorectal cancer patients. Data from 631 patients were collected from three different institutions. Globally, overall response rate was 35.8% (226 out of 631). Factors influencing response rate were 5FU dose intensity (high: 43.1%, low: 34.0%, P = 0.03); oxaliplatin (yes: 45.8%, no: 22.9%, P < 0.0001), performance status (PS 0: 46.1%, 1: 28.8%, 2: 26.7%, P < 0.0001), and haemoglobin levels (> or = 12 g dl(-1): 40.4%, < 12 g dl(-1): 29.2%, P = 0.004). In subgroup analysis significant differences in response rate between anaemic and nonanaemic patients were recorded in those patients treated with infusional chemotherapies (45.7 vs 25.5%, P < 0.0001), with high 5FU dose intensity (50.3 vs 32.7%, P = 0.005), with PS = 0 (49.8 vs 37.9%, P = 0.03), and with liver metastases (44.8 vs 33.8%, P = 0.002), whereas no difference was evident in those subjects treated with bolus schedules or according to gender. Anaemia was a strong predictor for activity of first-line 5FU-based chemotherapy especially in those groups that showed the best responses, for example high performance status, infusionally treated, higher 5FU dose and those with liver secondaries. Patients with higher haemoglobin levels recorded a greater response rate and a longer time to progression and survival than anaemic subjects. Prospective evaluation of role of correcting anaemia on response to therapy is justified by these results.

The anaemia of cancer: death by a thousand cuts

Cancer has a negative systemic impact on its host in addition to its local or metastatic effects, and no cancer complication is more ubiquitous than anaemia, a condition for which there is now a specific remedy, the recombinant growth factor erythropoietin. This is not a trivial therapeutic consideration, because cancer-associated anaemia has an adverse influence on survival regardless of tumour type. However, the pharmacological correction of anaemia with recombinant erythropoietin could promote tumour growth, whereas the use of tumour-necrosis factor-alpha (TNFalpha) and TNF-related apoptosis-inducing ligand as antitumour agents could exacerbate anaemia, thereby perpetuating tissue hypoxia and tumour progression.