Elevated neutrophil to lymphocyte ratio predicts poor prognosis in nasopharyngeal carcinoma

The prognostic predictive value of systemic immune index and systemic inflammatory response index in nasopharyngeal carcinoma: A systematic review and meta-analysis

Objective

To study the predictive value of systemic immune index (SII) and systemic inflammatory response index (SIRI) in the prognosis of patients with nasopharyngeal carcinoma.

Methods

Two researchers independently searched PubMed, Cochrane, Embase, and Web of Science databases (until March 18, 2022) for all studies on SII, SIRI, and prognosis in patients with nasopharyngeal carcinoma. Quality assessment of included studies was assessed using the Newcastle-Ottawa Scale (NOS). In addition, a bivariate mixed-effects model was used to explore predictive value.

Results

A total of 9 studies that satisfied the requirements were included, involving, 3187 patients with nasopharyngeal carcinoma. The results of the meta-analysis showed that SII could be an independent predictor of OS (HR=1.78, 95%CI [1.44-2.20], Z=5.28, P<0.05), and SII could also be an independent predictor of PFS (HR=1.66, 95%CI [1.36-2.03], Z=4.94, P<0.05). In addition, SIRI could also serve as an independent predictor of OS (HR=2.88, 95%CI [1.97-4.19], Z=5.51, P<0.05). The ROC area was 0.63, the sensitivity was 0.68 (95%CI [0.55-0.78]), and the specificity was 0.55 (95%CI [0.47-0.62]), all of which indicated that SII had a certain predictive value for OS.

Conclusion

SII and SIRI can be used as independent predictors to predict the prognosis and survival status of patients with nasopharyngeal carcinoma and have certain predictive accuracy. Therefore, SII and SIRI should be considered in studies that update survival risk assessment systems.

Systematic Review Registration

https://www.ytyhdyy.com/, identifier PROSPERO (CRD42022319678).

Prognostic Value of a Serum Panel of Inflammatory Factors in Non-Metastatic Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma Patients Undergoing Radical Radiotherapy with Adjuvant Chemotherapy

Purpose

To evaluate the prognostic value of interleukin (IL)-6, IL-8, granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF), leukemia inhibitory factor (LIF), and macrophage migration inhibitory factor (MIF) in non-metastatic nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) patients undergoing radical radiotherapy.

Patients and Methods

A serum panel compromising the inflammatory factors was analyzed in 372 NPC patients before and after radiotherapy. Independent prognostic factors were screened out using multivariate Cox regression analysis. A prediction model was built based on the training set data and validated using the test set data. The prognostic value of these factors was evaluated using the time-dependent receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve and an integrated time-averaged area under the curve (AUC).

Results

The baseline levels of IL-6, GM-CSF, and MIF were independent factors associated with poor OS and DMFS. A predictive model base established combining the baseline levels of these factors. The AUC values for the test set were 0.9828, 0.9968, and 0.9571 at 1, 3, and 5 years, respectively, compared to 0.9978, 0.9981, and 0.9222 for the training set, respectively. The AUC values for DMFS at 1, 3, and 5-years for the training set were 0.8744, 0.8951, and 0.9358, respectively, compared to 0.9525, 0.9663, and 0.9625 for the test set, respectively. The combination of post-treatment levels of IL-6, GM-CSF, and LIF also had good predictive value for OS with an AUC value > 0.85 during follow-up.

Conclusion

IL-6, GM-CSF, and MIF baseline levels are powerful prognostic factors for non-metastatic NPC patients. The combination of these factors effectively predicts OS and DMFS in non-metastatic NPC patients.

The ‘Danse Macabre’—Neutrophils the Interactive Partner Affecting Oral Cancer Outcomes

Over the past few decades, tremendous advances in the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of cancer have taken place. However for head and neck cancers, including oral cancer, the overall survival rate is below 50% and they remain the seventh most common malignancy worldwide. These cancers are, commonly, aggressive, genetically complex, and difficult to treat and the delay, which often occurs between early recognition of symptoms and diagnosis, and the start of treatment of these cancers, is associated with poor prognosis. Cancer development and progression occurs in concert with alterations in the surrounding stroma, with the immune system being an essential element in this process. Despite neutrophils having major roles in the pathology of many diseases, they were thought to have little impact on cancer development and progression. Recent studies are now challenging this notion and placing neutrophils as central interactive players with other immune and tumor cells in affecting cancer pathology. This review focuses on how neutrophils and their sub-phenotypes, N1, N2, and myeloid-derived suppressor cells, both directly and indirectly affect the anti-tumor and pro-tumor immune responses. Emphasis is placed on what is currently known about the interaction of neutrophils with myeloid innate immune cells (such as dendritic cells and macrophages), innate lymphoid cells, natural killer cells, and fibroblasts to affect the tumor microenvironment and progression of oral cancer. A better understanding of this dialog will allow for improved therapeutics that concurrently target several components of the tumor microenvironment, increasing the possibility of constructive and positive outcomes for oral cancer patients. For this review, PubMed, Web of Science, and Google Scholar were searched for manuscripts using keywords and combinations thereof of “oral cancer, OSCC, neutrophils, TANs, MDSC, immune cells, head and neck cancer, and tumor microenvironment” with a focus on publications from 2018 to 2021.

Neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio as a prognostic factor in oral squamous cell carcinoma - A single-institutional experience from a developing country

Background

Cell-mediated inflammatory response, neutrophils, lymphocytes and monocytes are being recognized as an important role in carcinogenesis. Neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) has been used as an independent prognostic factor in varieties of cancers. NLR can be easily determined from complete blood count, and it could be considered as a simple and inexpensive prognostic marker.

Aim

In this study, we evaluate the prognostic significance of NLR in patients with oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC).

Materials and Methods

Clinical and epidemiological data of all biopsy-proven nonmetastatic OSCC treated between 2014 and 2018 were taken into consideration. Pretreatment absolute neutrophil and lymphocyte counts were used to get NLR. Using univariate and multivariate analysis, the impact of NLR on overall survival (OS) and progression-free survival (PFS) was investigated.

Results

A total of 50 patients of OSCC with median pretreatment NLR ratio of 2.52 were identified. Based on the median NLR as a cutoff, patients were classified into two groups, i.e., high NLR and low NLR. Elevated NLR was significantly associated with lymph node metastasis (P = 0.01). Four-year OS and PFS were significantly better for patients with low NLR when compared with high NLR group (51.4% vs. 100%, P = 0.001). Four-year PFS for high and low NLR groups was 38.8% and 87.8% (P = 0.002). Multivariate analysis confirmed that NLR is an independent prognostic factor (P = 0.003).

Conclusion

Pretreatment NLR provides a simple, cheap and early predictor of outcome in this group of patients. However, an optimal cutoff value of NLR should be determined, for which larger sample size and prospective studies are required.

The prognostic value of before treatment neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio in nasopharyngeal carcinoma

OBJECTIVE

The aim of this analysis was to evaluate the prognostic significance of inflammatory biomarkers (NLR, dNLR, PLR and LMR) in NPC patients.

METHODS

This was a retrospective analysis of 111 NPC patients from January 2013 and December 2016. Receiver-operating characteristic (ROC) curve was plotted to determine the cut-off values of these inflammatory biomarkers. Univariate analysis and multivariate Cox regression model were used to evaluate the association between these parameters and progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS).

RESULTS

The optimal critical value of NLR was 2.02, by which cases were divided into high NLR group (NLR ≥ 2.02) and low NLR group (NLR < 2.02). The elevated NLR was significantly associated with decreased OS (P = 0.009) and remained significant in multivariate analysis (HR 8.48, 95% CI 1.69-42.46, P = 0.009).

CONCLUSIONS

The before treatment NLR may be an independent prognostic biomarker for OS in patients with NPC. NLR, dNLR and PLR might be a useful complement to TNM staging in the prognosis evaluation of NPC patients.

Cutoff point of neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio for predicting survival in nasopharyngeal carcinoma

Neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) was reported as an independent prognostic factor in many studies, but its cutoff point was not yet concluded. We set forth to prove and validate cutoff point of NLR as a poor prognostic factor for overall survival (OS) in nonmetastatic nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) patients.Retrospective cohort of nonmetastatic NPC adult patients treated with intensity-modulated radiotherapy with curative aim at Siriraj hospital during 2007 to 2014 was enrolled. NLR was defined as absolute neutrophil count divided by absolute lymphocyte count. OS was the primary outcome. We explored our cutoff value by maximum concordance index (C-index) method, and we validated our cutoff and previously reported cutoff values by categorizing patients as NLR ≤ 3 or >3. Internal validation was done by bootstrapping method.Four hundred sixty-three patients were included. The median follow-up time was 70.8 months. By the end of June 2019, 211 patients had died. In univariable analysis of OS by Cox model, an NLR value of 3 showed the highest C-index (0.548) with an HR of 1.43 (95% CI: 1.08-1.89). After adjustment for body mass index, overall staging, age, gender, and histology in multivariable analysis, an NLR >3 was still an independent prognostic factor of poor OS (HR = 1.34, 95% CI = 1.01-1.79). After internal validation, the resampling method shows no overfitting condition and corrected C-index was 0.547 for univariable analysis.A cutoff point of NLR of 3 from routine blood test was found to be an independent poor prognostic factor among patients with nonmetastatic NPC. This prognostic factor could be included in clinical prediction model of NPC and this further prediction model would select high risk patients for intensive treatment.

Role of neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio and platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio as prognostic markers in oral cavity cancers

Background: Various studies have associated inflammation with carcinogenesis. But still, the role of inflammatory markers in oral cancer has not been evaluated extensively. Most of the existing studies have been done on patients of varied sites, and their sample size is also scarce. In this study, we have evaluated the impact of neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) and platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio (PLR) on various clinicopathological factors and survival. Methodology: This was a retrospective analysis of prospectively collected data of 400 patients with oral squamous cell cancer. The pretreatment neutrophil and lymphocyte and platelet counts were recorded, and NLR and PLR were calculated for all patients. The NLR and PLR tertiles were correlated with the incidence of various clinicopathological factors and overall survival. Results: The median follow-up of the cohort was 36 months. The mean survival of the cohort was 41.7 months. PLR was associated with higher incidence of adverse clinicopathological factors. There was a trend of decreased overall survival with increasing NLR tertile. It was found to be significant only for the group which received adjuvant chemoradiotherapy (P 0.01). Patients with higher PLR values have been found to have a lower overall survival (P 0.006). Conclusion: NLR and PLR can be used to predict survival and outcomes in patients oral cavity cancer. PLR is a good predictor for adverse clinicopathological factors and survival. NLR can predict survival only in the subset of patients who have received chemotherapy.

A Prognostic Model Based on Clinicopathological Features and Inflammation- and Nutrition-Related Indicators Predicts Overall Survival in Surgical Patients With Tongue Squamous Cell Carcinoma

Objectives: It is reported that inflammation- and nutrition-related indicators have a prognostic impact on multiple cancers. Here we aimed to identify a prognostic nomogram model for prediction of overall survival (OS) in surgical patients with tongue squamous cell carcinoma (TSCC). Methods: The retrospective data of 172 TSCC patients were charted from the Cancer Hospital of Shantou University Medical College between 2008 and 2019. A Cox regression analysis was performed to determine prognostic factors to establish a nomogram and predict OS. The predictive accuracy of the model was analyzed by the calibration curves and the concordance index (C-index). The difference of OS was analyzed by Kaplan-Meier survival analysis. Results: Multivariate analysis showed age, tumor node metastasis (TNM) stage, red blood cell, platelets, and platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio were independent prognostic factors for OS, which were used to build the prognostic nomogram model. The C-index of the model for OS was 0.794 (95% CI = 0.729-0.860), which was higher than that of TNM stage 0.685 (95% CI = 0.605-0.765). In addition, decision curve analysis also showed the nomogram model had improved predictive accuracy and discriminatory performance for OS, compared to the TNM stage. According to the prognostic model risk score, patients in the high-risk subgroup had a lower 5-year OS rate than that in a low-risk subgroup (23% vs 49%, P < .0001). Conclusions: The nomogram model based on clinicopathological features inflammation- and nutrition-related indicators represents a promising tool that might complement the TNM stage in the prognosis of TSCC.

Impacts of Inflammation-Based Prognostic Scores on Survival in Patients With Hypopharyngeal Squamous Cell Carcinoma

Objective

To investigate the predictive accuracies of the modified Glasgow Prognostic Score (mGPS), neutrophil-lymphocyte ratio (NLR), and platelet-lymphocyte ratio (PLR) as prognostic factors for patients with hypopharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma (HSCC).

Study Design

Retrospective study.

Setting

University hospital.

Methods

The records of 106 patients who were histologically diagnosed with HSCC between January 2007 and December 2017 were reviewed. mGPS, NLR, and PLR were analyzed; univariate and multivariate analyses were performed to evaluate the prognosis of overall survival (OS).

Results

The overall 5-year survival rates of patients with mGPS0, mGPS1, and mGPS2 were 82.0%, 41.9%, and 13.5%, respectively. The overall 5-year survival rates of patients with low and high NLRs and with low and high PLRs were 83.8%, 46.2%, 57.0%, and 59.1%, respectively. mGPS (P < .001) and NLR (P < .05) were independently associated with OS, whereas PLR was not. For stage IV HSCC, only mGPS was independently associated with OS (P = .004).

Conclusion

mGPS is an excellent prognostic factor for patients with HSCC.

Correlation of Clinical and Pathological Diagnosis and Inflammatory Markers for Patients Undergoing Laryngeal Microsurgery

BACKGROUND

The purpose of this study was to investigate the rate of concordance between indirect- and direct laryngoscopy and final pathology in patients undergoing laryngeal microsurgery.

STUDY DESIGN

Retrospective case study.

METHODS

This study was conducted in the Otolaryngology clinic of a tertiary center between January 2017 and June 2020. Archives records of 432 patients, who underwent laryngeal microsurgery because of benign and premalignant lesions or malignancy, were examined. The patients were divided into three subgroups according to pathology results: benign lesions, premalignant lesions, and malignancies.

RESULTS

There were 400 laryngeal lesions from 385 patients, that met the inclusion and exclusion criteria, 307 (79.7%) were male and 78 were (20.3%) female. The average age of patients was 52.88 ± 13.21 years. The most common diagnosis was polyp (34.25%) followed by squamous cell carcinoma (27.75%) and Reinke's edema (8.25%) according to final pathology. For the benign laryngeal lesions, a high correlation level was observed regarding the compatibility of the indirect- and direct laryngoscopy diagnosis, and final pathology (P < 0.001). The laryngeal premalignant lesions and malignancies were significantly more common in older age and male gender (P <0.001). Similarly, smoking usage was more frequent in patients with premalignant lesions and malignancy (P <0.001). The neutrophil count, neutrophil to lymphocyte ratio, platelet to lymphocyte ratio, neutrophil to platelet ratio as well as CRP value were significantly higher in malignancy group (P <0.05). On the other hand, lymphocyte ratio was smaller in the malignancy group compared with the benign and premalignant lesions, and this difference was significant (P = 0.016).

CONCLUSION

Our study demonstrated a high rate of agreement between the clinical diagnosis and pathology results in patients with benign laryngeal lesions, in contrast to premalignant lesions and malignancies. Also, the neutrophil to lymphocyte ratio, platelet to lymphocyte ratio, neutrophil to platelet ratio as well as CRP were shown to be increased in patients with laryngeal malignancies.

Low Advanced Lung Cancer Inflammation Index Predicts Poor Prognosis in Locally Advanced Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma Patients Treated with Definitive Concurrent Chemoradiotherapy

Purpose

We aimed to retrospectively investigate the prognostic worth of pretreatment advanced lung cancer inflammation index (ALI) in locally advanced nasopharyngeal carcinoma (LA-NPC) patients treated with concurrent chemoradiotherapy (C-CRT). Patients and Methods. A total of 164 LA-NPC patients treated with cisplatinum-based definitive C-CRT were included in this retrospective cohort analysis. The convenience of ideal pre-C-CRT ALI cut-offs affecting survival results was searched by employing the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analyses. The primary endpoint was the link between the ALI groups and overall survival (OS), while cancer-specific survival (CSS), locoregional progression-free survival [LR(PFS)], distant metastasis-free survival (DMFS), and PFS comprised the secondary endpoints.

Results

The ROC curve analyses distinguished a rounded ALI cut-off score of 24.2 that arranged the patients into two cohorts [ALI ≥ 24.2 (N = 94) versus < 24.2 (N = 70)] with significantly distinct CSS, OS, DMFS, and PFS outcomes, except for the LRPFS. At a median follow-up time of 79.2 months (range: 6–141), the comparative analyses showed that ALI < 24.2 cohort had significantly shorter median CSS, OS, DMFS, and PFS time than the ALI ≥ 24.2 cohort (P < 0.001for each), which retained significance at 5- (P < 0.001) and 10-year (P < 0.001) time points. In multivariate analyses, ALI < 24.2 was asserted to be an independent predictor of the worse prognosis for each endpoint (P < 0.001for each) in addition to the tumor stage (T-stage) (P < 0.05 for all endpoints) and nodal stage (N-stage) (P < 0.05 for all endpoints).

Conclusion

As a novel prognostic index, the pretreatment ALI < 24.2 appeared to be strongly associated with significantly diminished survival outcomes in LA-NPC patients treated with C-CRT independent of the universally recognized T- and N-stages.

Salvage Endoscopic Nasopharyngectomy in Recurrent Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma: Prognostic Factors and Treatment Outcomes

BACKGROUND

This study aimed to investigate the demographics, treatment outcomes, and prognostic factors of salvage endoscopic nasopharyngectomy in recurrent nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC).

METHODS

We conducted a retrospective analysis of 189 patients who underwent treatment for recurrent NPC from January 2006 to June 2018. The Kaplan-Meier method and log-rank test were used to assess survival rates. A Cox regression model was used for multivariate survival analyses.

RESULTS

We included 132 men and 57 women in the study, with a median age of 51 (range, 25-85) years. The overall 1-, 3-, and 5-year survival rates were 82.2%, 59.5%, and 43.6%, respectively, during a median follow-up of 24 (range, 2-111) months. In subjects over 50 years of age, diabetes, low body mass index (BMI < 20 kg/m²), low hemoglobin (<120 g/l) levels, increased neutrophil to lymphocyte ratio (NLR; ≥ 6), advanced T stage (rT3 and rT4), lymph node metastasis, and positive surgical margins were associated with a poor prognosis in terms of overall survival. Cox multivariate regression analyses showed significant differences in age, BMI, NLR, diabetes, T stage, N stage, and tumor necrosis.

CONCLUSIONS

In subjects over 50 years of age, diabetes, low BMI, increased NLR, advanced T stage, lymph node metastasis, and tumor necrosis were independent prognostic factors for overall survival.

Prognostic Value of Neutrophil-Lymphocyte Ratio in Cardiogenic Shock: A Cohort Study

BACKGROUND Inflammation plays an important part in the pathogenesis of cardiogenic shock (CGS). Whether the neutrophil-lymphocyte ratio (NLR), an integrated biomarker of inflammation, is associated with the outcome of CGS patients remains unknown. This retrospective cohort study was performed to identify the utility of using NLR among patients with CGS. MATERIAL AND METHODS Data were extracted from the MIMIC database. We applied smooth curve fitting to define the NLR cutoff values. The primary outcome was 30-day mortality. Cox proportional hazards models, subgroup analysis, and receiver operator characteristic (ROC) curve analysis were performed. RESULTS A total of 1470 CGS patients were extracted, among which 801 (54.5%) were men. The mean age of the population was 70.37 years. An inverse U-shaped relationship was observed between NLR and mortality in CGS patients, with the highest risk being at values ranging from 9.4 to 15. For the primary outcome of 30-day mortality, the adjusted HR (95% CI) values of the middle tertile (NLR 9.4-15) and the upper tertile (NLR >15) were 1.47 (1.14, 1.88) and 1.22 (0.94, 1.57) compared with the reference of lower tertile (NLR <9.4). ROC curve analysis showed that NLR had a more sensitive prognostic value in predicting 30-day mortality of CGS than the neutrophil or lymphocyte percentage alone (0.660 vs. 0.540, 0.549). CONCLUSIONS An inverse U-shaped curve was presented between NLR and the mortality of CGS. NLR seemed to be a readily available and independent prognostic biomarker for patients with CGS. The prognostic value of NLR was more sensitive than the neutrophil or lymphocyte percentage alone, but not as good as SOFA or SAPSII score.

Hematologic Markers of Lung Metastasis in Stage IV Colorectal Cancer

BACKGROUND

Many studies showed an association between absolute neutrophil count (ANC), absolute monocyte count (AMC), neutrophil-lymphocyte ratio (NLR), monocyte-lymphocyte ratio (MLR), and platelet-lymphocyte ratio (PLR) with poor overall survival (OS) in patients with cancer. However, only a few studies were conducted to further investigate this association in colorectal cancer (CRC).

METHODS

Clinical data from 299 stage IV CRC patients treated at King Hussein Cancer Center from 2004 to 2012 have been retrospectively reviewed. We examined the association between ANC, AMC, MLR, PLR, and NLR with lung metastasis in stage IV CRC. Receiver Operating Characteristic (ROC) curve analysis was operated to determine the optimal NLR cutoff value. Univariate and multivariate analysis were performed.

RESULTS

The ROC value of 3.4 was determined as the cutoff value of NLR to study the association. Univariate and multivariate analysis showed that patients with high baseline NLR (≥ 3.4) had more baseline lung metastasis than patients with low NLR (< 3.4) (p = 0.0001, p = 0.0151, respectively). Also, baseline NLR correlated significantly with the presence of lymphovascular invasion (p = 0.001). In patients with no baseline lung metastasis, high post-treatment NLR was associated with consequent development of lung metastasis (p = 0.0227). Other markers including ANC, AMC, MLR, and PLR were significantly associated with lung metastasis at time of diagnosis (p = 0.0006, p = 0.0006, p = 0.0187, and p = 0.001, respectively).

CONCLUSION

Results are suggesting that different hematologic markers obtained from a cheap test (CBC) could potentially be used to predict the likelihood of lung metastasis in stage IV CRC. Prospective studies are needed to further assess the immune cells' role in tumor metastasis promotion.

Evaluation of Prognosis in Nasopharyngeal Cancer Using Machine Learning

BACKGROUND AND AIM

Although the prognosis of nasopharyngeal cancer largely depends on a classification based on the tumor-lymph node metastasis staging system, patients at the same stage may have different clinical outcomes. This study aimed to evaluate the survival prognosis of nasopharyngeal cancer using machine learning.

SETTINGS AND DESIGN

Original, retrospective.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

A total of 72 patients with a diagnosis of nasopharyngeal cancer who received radiotherapy ± chemotherapy were included in the study. The contribution of patient, tumor, and treatment characteristics to the survival prognosis was evaluated by machine learning using the following techniques: logistic regression, artificial neural network, XGBoost, support-vector clustering, random forest, and Gaussian Naive Bayes.

RESULTS

In the analysis of the data set, correlation analysis, and binary logistic regression analyses were applied. Of the 18 independent variables, 10 were found to be effective in predicting nasopharyngeal cancer-related mortality: age, weight loss, initial neutrophil/lymphocyte ratio, initial lactate dehydrogenase, initial hemoglobin, radiotherapy duration, tumor diameter, number of concurrent chemotherapy cycles, and T and N stages. Gaussian Naive Bayes was determined as the best algorithm to evaluate the prognosis of machine learning techniques (accuracy rate: 88%, area under the curve score: 0.91, confidence interval: 0.68-1, sensitivity: 75%, specificity: 100%).

CONCLUSION

Many factors affect prognosis in cancer, and machine learning algorithms can be used to determine which factors have a greater effect on survival prognosis, which then allows further research into these factors. In the current study, Gaussian Naive Bayes was identified as the best algorithm for the evaluation of prognosis of nasopharyngeal cancer.

Systemic immune-inflammation index as a prognostic marker in patients with newly diagnosed metastatic nasopharyngeal carcinoma: a propensity score-matched study

Background

Systemic immune-inflammation index (SII) is significantly associated with poor survival in variety of cancers. However, SII has not yet been investigated in patients with newly diagnosed metastatic nasopharyngeal carcinoma (mNPC). Thus, our aim is to explore the role of SII in metastatic Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma.

Methods

Two hundred and forty-three patients with newly diagnosed mNPC were retrospectively enrolled. The Kaplan-Meier analysis and Cox regression analysis was performed to evaluate the prognostic value of SII in overall survival (OS) and progression-free survival (PFS). Heterogeneity of factors was balanced by using propensity score-matched (PSM) analysis (1:1 for high SII versus low SII).

Results

Kaplan-Meier analysis showed that patients with high SII were associated with poor median OS (18.0 vs. 36.0 m, P<0.001) and PFS (10.0 vs. 22.0 m, P<0.001) in mNPC. The Cox regression analysis suggested that high SII was a prognostic factor for OS (HR 1.75, 95% CI: 1.22–2.52, P=0.001) and PFS (HR 1.69, 95% CI: 1.22–2.35, P=0.002). PSM analysis still confirmed that SII was an independent marker for OS (HR 1.86, 95% CI: 1.22–2.83, P=0.004) and PFS (HR 1.84, 95% CI: 1.23–2.77, P=0.003).

Conclusions

SII is an independent prognostic biomarker for poor OS and PFS in patients with newly diagnosed mNPC and might be a promising tool for guiding treatment strategy decisions.

Baseline Low Prognostic Nutritional Index Predicts Poor Survival in Locally Advanced Nasopharyngeal Carcinomas Treated With Radical Concurrent Chemoradiotherapy

BACKGROUND

To retrospectively assess the impact of prognostic nutritional index (PNI) on survival outcomes of patients with locoregionally advanced nasopharyngeal carcinoma (LA-NPC) treated with concurrent chemoradiotherapy (CCRT).

METHODS

This study incorporated 154 patients with LA-NPC who received exclusive cisplatinum-based CCRT. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis was utilized for accessibility of pretreatment PNI cutoffs influencing survival results. The primary end point was the interaction between the overall survival (OS) and PNI values, while cancer-specific survival (CSS) locoregional progression-free survival (LR-PFS), distant metastasis-free survival (DMFS), and PFS were the secondary end points.

RESULTS

A rounded PNI cutoff value of 51 was identified in ROC curve analyses to exhibit significant link with CSS, OS, DMFS, and PFS outcomes, but not LR-PFS. Patients grouping per PNI value (≥51 [N = 95] vs <51 [N = 49]) revealed that PNI < 51 group had significantly shorter median CSS (P < .001), OS (P < .001), DMFS (P < .001), and PFS (P < .001) times than the PNI ≥ 51 group, and the multivariate results confirmed the PNI < 51 as an independent predictor of poor outcomes for each end point (P < .05 for each). The unfavorable impact of the low PNI was also continued at 10-year time point with survival rates of 77.9% versus 42.4%, 73.6% versus 33.9%, 57.9% versus 27.1%, and 52.6% versus 23.7% for CSS, OS, DMFS, and PFS, respectively. Additionally, we found that PNI < 51 was significantly associated with higher rates of weight loss >5% over past 6 months (49.2% versus 11.6%; P = .002) compared to PNI < 51 group.

CONCLUSION

Low pre-CCRT PNI levels were independently associated with significantly reduced CSS, OS, DMFS, and PFS outcomes in patients with LA-NPC treated with definitive CCRT.

Prognostic Significance of Hematological Markers for Patients with Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma: A Meta-analysis

Purpose: Hematological parameters are considered to be associated with prognosis in various cancers. We designed a meta-analysis to evaluate the prognostic significance of hematological parameters, including the neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR), C-reactive protein/albumin ratio (CRP/ALB), lymphocyte-to-monocyte ratio (LMR), plasma fibrinogen level, Glasgow prognostic score (GPS), platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio (PLR) and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) level, on clinical outcomes in nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC).

Methods: Relevant studies published prior to February 2018 were identified in the PubMed, Web of Science, EMBASE and Cochrane library databases. The primary outcome was overall survival (OS), and the secondary outcome was progression-free survival (PFS). The pooled hazard ratios (HRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were calculated.

Results: In total, 23 studies encompassing 23,417 patients were included in our meta-analysis. An elevated NLR was related to a poor OS (HR=1.46, 95% CI=1.30-1.63, p<0.00001) and PFS (HR=1.67, 95% CI=1.36-2.07, p<0.00001), and a high PLR was associated with a poor OS (HR=1.62, 95% CI=1.32-1.98, p<0.00001). Additionally, a high LMR predicted a significantly favorable OS (HR=0.50, 95% CI: 0.43-0.58, p<0.00001). CRP/ALB, the GPS, HDL-C and plasma fibrinogen levels were also related to OS and PFS.

Conclusion: Inflammation-based prognostic scoring systems considering inflammatory cells (lymphocytes, neutrophils, platelets and monocytes) and proteins (ALB, CRP and HDL-C) are essential prognostic factors.

Neutrophil: Lymphocyte ratio and oral squamous cell carcinoma: A preliminary study

Introduction/Background

It is well-established that host response plays a vital role in the determination of biological behavior of tumors. Inflammatory response against tumors has been a focus of research in recent years. There has been extensive research regarding inflammatory reaction in oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) in tissue specimens. However, there is no much data regarding systemic inflammatory response in OSCC. It was recently reported that an elevated neutrophil:lymphocyte ratio (NLR) may correlate with aggressive biological behavior in various malignancies including head-and-neck tumors. Thus, the study was undertaken with the aim of evaluation of NLR in peripheral blood of patients suffering from OSCC.

Materials and Methods

The research was a prospective, case-control study. Hundred patients suffering from OSCC and 100 healthy individuals were included in the study, after obtaining informed consent. NLR was determined from the differential leukocyte count obtained from complete blood count in each case. Comparison of NLR was made among two groups.

Results

The mean value of absolute neutrophil count was found to be significantly higher in OSCC cases than in controls (P < 0.01). The mean value of NLR in OSCC was found to be 2.84, and in controls, it was 1.95. This difference was found to be statistically significant (P < 0.001).

Conclusion

NLR and other hematological parameters may serve as surrogate marker for potential aggressive behavior of OSCC and may help in prognostic prediction of these cases.

Prognostic Nomograms in Oral Squamous Cell Carcinoma: The Negative Impact of Low Neutrophil to Lymphocyte Ratio

Objectives: To investigate the prognostic significance of preoperative neutrophil to lymphocyte ratio (NLR) and the impact of different clinical-pathologic factors in a series of primary oral squamous cell carcinomas (OSCC).

Materials and Methods: All naive OSCCs treated with upfront surgery between 2000 and 2014 were retrospectively reviewed. Patients with distant metastasis, synchronous head and neck cancer, immunological disorders, or who had received previous chemotherapy and/or radiation of the head and neck area were excluded. The main outcomes were overall (OS), disease-specific (DSS), loco-regional free (LRFS), and distant metastasis free (DMFS) survivals. Univariate (Kaplan-Meier) and multivariate (Cox regression model) analysis were performed, and nomograms developed for each outcome. NLR was analyzed as a continuous variable using restricted cubic spline multivariable Cox regression models.

Results: One-hundred-eighty-two patients were included. Five-year estimates for LRFS, DMFS, DSS, and OS were 67, 83.7, 69.5, and 61.2%, respectively. NLR had a complex influence on survival and risk of recurrence: negative for very low and high values, while positive in case of intermediate ratios. At univariate analysis, T classification, 7th AJCC stage, nodal metastasis, perineural spread, and lymphovascular invasion were statistically significant. At multivariate analysis, extranodal extension (ENE) and perineural spread were the most powerful independent prognostic factors. NLR was an independent prognosticator for the risk of recurrence. In nomograms, NLR and ENE had the strongest prognostic effect.

Conclusions: In OSCC, very low preoperative NLR values have a negative prognostic impact on survival and recurrence, similarly to high ratios. ENE and perineural spread are the most important clinical-pathologic prognosticators.

Neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio as a prognostic factor for pharyngocutaneous fistula after total laryngectomy

SUMMARY

The role of systemic inflammatory response as a prognostic factor has been proposed in a variety of cancers. The purpose of this study was to investigate the prognostic value of the pretreatment neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) in the incidence of pharyngocutaneous fistula (PCF) in patients who underwent total laryngectomy. We conducted a retrospective cohort analysis of 141 patients with squamous cell carcinoma of larynx who underwent total laryngectomy from 2009 to 2015. The incidence of PCF was 49.6%. A higher risk of 23% was observed among patients with NLR > 2.5 for the occurrence of PCF (p = 0.007). Patients with laryngeal squamous cell carcinoma who present elevated values in the ration > LR> (> 2.5) presented a higher risk of developing pharyngocutaneous fistula in the postoperative setting of total laryngectomy.

Effect of CRP and Kinetics of CRP in Prognosis of Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma

Baseline C-reactive protein (CRP) has been determined as a prognostic factor in nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC). This study was designed to further evaluate the impact of CRP kinetics on NPC patients. Thousand three hundred and seventy eight NPC patients from February 2001 to June 2011 were retrospectively reviewed. CRP were measured at beginning, middle, and the end of the treatment. The endpoints were overall survival (OS) and distant metastasis free survival (DMFS). Patients were divided into three groups according to baseline CRP and CRP kinetics: (1) continuously normal group: patients whose baseline CRP normal and never elevated, (2) ever-elevated group: patients whose CRP ever elevated regardless time points, (3) continuously elevated group: patients whose baseline CRP elevated and never normalized. Baseline CRP, CRP after treatment, and CRP kinetics were correlated with TNM stage, T stage, and N stage. Univariate and multivariate analysis identified that elevated baseline CRP and CRP after treatment had significant association with worse survival than normal CRP. Oppositely, elevated CRP during treatment was not associated with survival. Patients with continuously elevated CRP significantly had poor OS and DMFS (HR:2.610, 95%CI: 1.592–4.279, p < 0.001; HR:2.816, 95%CI: 1.486–5.302, p = 0.001, respectively). In multivariate analysis, CRP kinetics assessment is an independent prognostic factor for OS and DFMS in NPC patients (HR:2.512, 95%CI: 1.452–4.346, p = 0.001; HR:3.389, 95%CI: 1.734–6.625, p = 0.001, respectively). In conclusion, elevated CRP at baseline and after treatment are predictive factors of poor prognosis for NPC. The study of CRP kinetics shows that continuously elevated CRP during treatment might indicate an unfavorable prognosis for NPC.

Hematologic markers of distant metastases and poor prognosis in gynecological cancers

Background

Despite the recent progress in the development of anti-cancer drugs, the treatment of metastatic tumors is usually ineffective. The systemic inflammatory response performs key roles in different stages of the carcinogenesis process including metastasis. The high neutrophil-lymphocyte ratio (NLR), monocyte-lymphocyte ratio (MLR), and platelet-lymphocyte ratio (PLR) were found to be associated with poor survival rates in the majority of solid tumors. However, only a few studies were conducted to further investigate this association in patients with advanced gynecological cancers.

Methods

Clinical data from 264 patients with FIGO stage III and IV gynecological (endometrial, ovarian and cervical) cancers treated at King Hussein Cancer Center (Amman-Jordan) from 2006 to 2012 were retrospectively reviewed. We examined the association between absolute neutrophil count (ANC), absolute monocyte count (AMC), MLR, PLR, and NLR with distant metastases, overall survival and event-free survival in gynecological cancers. For survival analysis, Receiver Operating Characteristic (ROC) curve analysis was operated to determine the optimal cutoff values.

Results

Patients with high baseline NLR (≥4.1) had more baseline distant metastases than patients with low baseline NLR (< 4.1), (p-value 0.045). Patients with high baseline AMC (≥560) had more distant metastases in comparison to patients with low baseline AMC (< 560), (p-value 0.040). Furthermore, Patients with high baseline PLR (≥0.3) had more distant metastases in comparison to patients with low baseline PLR (< 0.3), (p-value 0.025). Additionally, patients with high baseline ANC (≥5700) had worse overall survival compared to the patients with low baseline ANC (< 5700), (p-value 0.015). Also, patients with high baseline AMC (≥490) had worse overall survival compared to the patients with low baseline AMC (< 490), (p-value 0.044).

Conclusion

Different hematologic markers obtained from a cheap test (CBC) could potentially be used to predict the presence of distant metastases thus used as prognostic indices in gynecological cancers.

Prognostic value of neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio in advanced nasopharyngeal carcinoma: a large institution-based cohort study from an endemic area

Background

Findings remain unclear whether neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) detrimentally affects advanced nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) prognosis. We aim to evaluate the prognostic value of NLR in patients with NPC based on a large-scale cohort from an endemic area.

Methods

We selected patients retrospectively from a cohort examining long-term cancer outcomes following diagnosis. Neutrophil counts and lymphocyte counts were assessed prior to treatment. Kaplan–Meier method and log-rank test were used to calculate and compare survival outcomes. Additionally, Cox proportional hazards model was utilized to carry out univariate and multivariate analyses.

Results

Between October 2009 and August 2012, we enrolled 1550 consecutive NPC patients staged II-IVB. The median value of NLR was 2.27 (interquartile range [IQR], 1.71–3.12). Determined by operating characteristic curve using overall survival (OS) as an endpoint, the cutoff value for NLR was 2.50. At 5 years, NLR > 2.50 was associated with inferior OS (90.3% vs 82.5%; P < 0.001), distant metastasis-free survival (DMFS, 89.4% vs 85.0%; P = 0.014), and progression-free survival (PFS, 80.9% vs 76.5%; P = 0.031) than NLR ≤2.50. In multivariate analysis, NLR was found to be a significant prognostic factor for OS (HR, 1.72; 95% CI, 131–2.24; P < 0.001), DMFS (HR, 1.45; 95% CI, 1.10–1.92; P = 0.009), and PFS (HR, 1.29; 95% CI, 1.04–1.59; P = 0.021).

Conclusion

Pretreatment NLR independently affects survival. Our findings suggest that NLR measurements will be of great clinical significance in the management of NPC.

Relation of baseline neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio to survival and toxicity in head and neck cancer patients treated with (chemo-) radiation

Background

A high neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) is a marker of systemic inflammation and together with the platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio (PLR) is associated with worse outcomes in several solid tumors. We investigated the prognostic value of NLR and PLR in patients with head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) treated with primary or adjuvant (chemo)radiotherapy ((C)RT).

Methods

A retrospective chart review of consecutive patients with HNSCC was performed. Neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio and PLR were computed using complete blood counts (CBCs) performed within 10 days before treatment start. The prognostic role of NLR and PLR was evaluated with univariable and multivariable Cox regression analyses adjusting for disease-specific prognostic factors. NLR and PLR were assessed as log-transformed continuous variables (log NLR and log PLR). Endpoints of interest were overall survival (OS), locoregional recurrence-free survival (LRFS), distant recurrence-free survival (DRFS), and acute toxicity.

Results

We analyzed 186 patients treated from 2007 to 2010. Primary sites were oropharynx (45%), oral cavity (28%), hypopharynx (14%), and larynx (13%). Median follow-up was 49 months. Higher NLR was associated with OS (adjusted HR per 1 unit higher log NLR = 1.81 (1.16–2.81), p = 0.012), whereas no association could be shown with LRFS (HR = 1.49 (0,83-2,68), p = 0.182), DRFS (HR = 1.38 (0.65–3.22), p = 0.4), or acute toxicity grade ≥ 2. PLR was not associated with outcome, nor with toxicity.

Conclusion

Our data suggest that in HNSCC patients treated with primary or adjuvant (C)RT, NLR is an independent predictor of mortality, but not disease-specific outcomes or toxicity. Neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio is a readily available biomarker that could improve pre-treatment prognostication and may be used for risk-stratification.

Targeting both tumour-associated CXCR2+ neutrophils and CCR2+ macrophages disrupts myeloid recruitment and improves chemotherapeutic responses in pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma

OBJECTIVE

Chemokine pathways are co-opted by pancreatic adenocarcinoma (PDAC) to facilitate myeloid cell recruitment from the bone marrow to establish an immunosuppressive tumour microenvironment (TME). Targeting tumour-associated CXCR2⁺neutrophils (TAN) or tumour-associated CCR2⁺ macrophages (TAM) alone improves antitumour immunity in preclinical models. However, a compensatory influx of an alternative myeloid subset may result in a persistent immunosuppressive TME and promote therapeutic resistance. Here, we show CCR2 and CXCR2 combined blockade reduces total tumour-infiltrating myeloids, promoting a more robust antitumour immune response in PDAC compared with either strategy alone.

METHODS

Blood, bone marrow and tumours were analysed from PDAC patients and controls. Treatment response and correlative studies were performed in mice with established orthotopic PDAC tumours treated with a small molecule CCR2 inhibitor (CCR2i) and CXCR2 inhibitor (CXCR2i), alone and in combination with chemotherapy.

RESULTS

A systemic increase in CXCR2⁺ TAN correlates with poor prognosis in PDAC, and patients receiving CCR2i showed increased tumour-infiltrating CXCR2⁺ TAN following treatment. In an orthotopic PDAC model, CXCR2 blockade prevented neutrophil mobilisation from the circulation and augmented chemotherapeutic efficacy. However, depletion of either CXCR2⁺ TAN or CCR2⁺ TAM resulted in a compensatory response of the alternative myeloid subset, recapitulating human disease. This was overcome by combined CCR2i and CXCR2i, which augmented antitumour immunity and improved response to FOLFIRINOX chemotherapy.

CONCLUSION

Dual targeting of CCR2⁺ TAM and CXCR2⁺ TAN improves antitumour immunity and chemotherapeutic response in PDAC compared with either strategy alone.

Neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio as a prognostic indicator in head and neck cancer: A systematic review and meta-analysis

BACKGROUND

The purposes of this systematic review and meta-analysis were to investigate the relationship between the neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) and prognosis in head and neck cancer.

METHODS

A systematic review and meta-analysis were done to investigate the role of NLR in overall survival (OS), disease-specific survival (DSS), disease-free survival (DFS), and progression-free survival (PFS).

RESULTS

For qualitative analysis, 33 cohorts with over 10 072 patients were included. For quantitative analysis, 15 studies were included with 5562 patients. The pooled data demonstrated that an elevated NLR significantly predicted poorer OS and DSS.

CONCLUSION

An elevated pretreatment NLR is a prognostic marker for head and neck cancer. It represents a simple and easily obtained marker that could be used to stratify groups of high-risk patients who might benefit from adjuvant therapy.

[Inflammatory and immune biomarkers of radiation response]

In radiotherapy, the treatment is adapted to each individual to protect healthy tissues but delivers most of time a standard dose according to the tumor histology and site. The only biomarkers studied to individualize the treatment are the HPV status with radiation dose de-escalation strategies, and tumor hypoxia with dose escalation to hypoxic subvolumes using FMISO- or FAZA-PET imaging. In the last decades, evidence has grown about the contribution of the immune system to radiation tumor response. Many preclinical studies have identified some of the mechanisms involved. In this context, we have realised a systematic review to highlight potential inflammatory and immune biomarkers of radiotherapy response. Some are inside the tumor microenvironment, as lymphocyte infiltration or PD-L1 expression, others are circulating biomarkers, including different types of hematological cells, cytokines and chemokines.

Pretreatment neutrophil to lymphocyte ratio in determining the prognosis of head and neck cancer: a meta-analysis

BACKGROUND

Recent studies have reported a relationship between prognosis and neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) in patients with head and neck cancer (HNC). As the results are still controversial, we conducted a meta-analysis of pretreatment NLR in peripheral blood and prognosis in HNC patients.

METHODS

We retrieved articles from PubMed, Medline, Cochrane Library, Embase and Web of Science. A comparative analysis was conducted for the effect of pretreatment NLR in peripheral blood on overall survival (OS), progression-free survival, disease-free survival (DFS), disease-specific survival, metastasis-free survival, and recurrence-free survival of HNC patients. The analysis applied the criteria for systematic reviews described in the Cochrane Handbook and was conducted using hazard ratios (HRs) to estimate effect size, and calculated by Stata/SE version 13.0.

RESULTS

The meta-analysis included eligible cohort studies (5475 cases). The OS data indicated increased mortality risk in HNC patients with a high NLR (HR = 1.84, 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.53-2.23; P < 0.001; heterogeneity, I² = 37.2%, P = 0.074). Analysis of subgroups stratified by NLR cutoff values revealed increased mortality risk and significantly shorter DFS in patients with high NLR compared to those with low NLR (HR = 2.18, 95% CI: 1.46-3.24; P < 0.001). Patients with high NLR had a higher probability of tumor recurrence after treatment than those with low NLR (HR = 1.63, 95% CI: 1.09-2.45; P = 0.017; heterogeneity, I² = 68.7%; P = 0.022). The probability of distant metastasis following treatment was greater in patients with high compared with low NLR (HR = 1.92, 95% CI: 1.36-2.72; P < 0.001; heterogeneity, I² = 0.0%; P = 0.614). Funnel plots of the meta-analysis results were stable, as shown by sensitivity analysis. No publication bias was detected by the Egger test (P = 0.135).

CONCLUSIONS

HNC patients with elevated pretreatment NLR in peripheral blood have poor prognosis and are prone to local invasion and distant metastasis. NLR values are easily obtained from routinely collected blood samples and could assist clinicians to determine prognosis of HNC patients.

Prognostic Role of Neutrophil-to-Lymphocyte Ratio in Patients with Human Papillomavirus-Positive Oropharyngeal Cancer

Objective To investigate the prognostic impact of the neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) for human papillomavirus-positive oropharyngeal cancer (HPV+ OPC). Study Design Retrospective institutional database analysis. Setting Tertiary referral medical center. Material and Methods In total, 104 patients with HPV+ OPC were enrolled. From the blood laboratory data checked within 4 weeks before initiation of primary treatment, NLR was calculated. The association between clinicopathological characteristics and NLR was analyzed, and the prognostic role was evaluated based on overall survival (OS) and disease-free survival (DFS). Results According to the cutoff value (2.42) for NLR, the patients were classified into the low NLR group (n = 61) or the high NLR group (n = 43). High NLR was associated with a higher rate of advanced T classification ( P = .007) and diabetes mellitus ( P = .01). The proportion of surgery-based treatment was lower in the high NLR group (20.9% vs 42.6%, P = .02). The high NLR group showed a lower 5-year OS rate (85.3% vs 96.3%, P = .09) and a lower 5-year DFS rate (68.1% vs 94.7%, P = .01) than those in the low NLR group. Multivariate analysis showed that advanced N classification was a significant predictor for worse 5-year OS (hazard ratio [HR], 17.40; 95% confidence interval [CI], 2.36-128.29) and that both advanced N classification (HR, 7.78; 95% CI, 2.33-25.93) and high NLR (HR, 4.16; 95% CI, 1.24-13.95) were important prognosticators for worse 5-year DFS. Conclusion Elevated pretreatment NLR was associated with poor DFS in patients with HPV+ OPC.

Impact of hematological inflammatory markers on clinical outcome in patients with salivary duct carcinoma: a multi-institutional study in Japan

The prognostic role of modified Glasgow Prognostic Score (mGPS), neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) and platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio (PLR) in patients with salivary duct carcinoma (SDC) remains unclear. We conducted a multi-institutional retrospective cohort study of 140 SDC patients. The survival impact of these hematological markers was evaluated using multivariate proportional hazard models.High mGPS (≥1) was significantly associated with worse survival (3-year overall survival (OS): 16.7% vs 66.1%, p-value=0.003; 3-year progression-free survival (PFS): 0.0% vs 27.9%, p-value<0.001). Additionally, high C-reactive protein (CRP) (≥0.39 mg/dl) was significantly associated with worse survival (3-year OS: 32.1% vs 68.2%, p-value=0.001; 3-year PFS: 7.1% vs 31.1%, p-value<0.001). These associations were consistent with multivariate analysis adjusted for established prognostic factors. Although we also found significant association of high NLR (≥2.5) with OS (HR 1.80; 95% confidence interval, 1.05-3.08) in multivariate analysis, this association were inconsistent with the results of PFS. In addition, we found no significant associations of PLR with survival. In conclusion, we found that mGPS, CRP and NLR were identified as prognostic factors associated with survival in SDC patients.

Prognostic value of circulating biomarker score in advanced-stage head and neck squamous cell carcinoma

BACKGROUND

Circulating biomarker (CB) is a convenient, emerging predictive tool for treatment response and outcomes in human cancers. Therefore, we examined the prognostic value of pre-treatment and early post-treatment CBs and their summated scores in patients with head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC).

METHODS

This study prospectively included 310 consecutive patients who underwent definitive treatment for previously untreated advanced-stage HNSCC between 2010 and 2015. The CB score was determined by complete blood counts (CBCs) and blood chemistry before and 2 months after the treatment, and the number of abnormal CB was counted from 0 to 10. Univariate and multivariate analyses with Cox proportional hazards models were used to find factors associated with disease-free survival (DFS) and overall survival (OS).

RESULTS

Most CBC profiles were significantly changed at 2-months post-treatment compared with those at pre-treatment. Univariate analyses showed that hypoalbuminemia, leucocytosis, C-reactive protein, high CB scores (≥6), age, performance status and comorbidity and tumour site were significantly associated with DFS and OS (all P < 0.05). Both pre- and post-treatment CB scores were independent factors predictive of DFS and OS outcomes in the multivariate analyses (P < 0.05). High CB scores at pre-treatment were associated with 7-10-fold increased risk of unfavourable DFS and OS outcomes, and those at 2-months post-treatment were associated with 2 to 4-fold increased risk of poor survival outcomes (all P < 0.05).

CONCLUSIONS

CB scores at pre-treatment and early post-treatment are useful for predicting survival outcomes in patients with advanced-stage HNSCC.

Prognostic value of neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio and platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio in intensity modulated radiation therapy for nasopharyngeal carcinoma

Background

Inflammatory response markers plays an important role in tumor progression. The aim of this analysis was to evaluate whether the neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR), and platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio (PLR) could predict the prognosis of nasopharyngeal carcinoma(NPC).

Materials and Methods

247 patients who underwent Intensity Modulated Radiation Therapy( IMRT )were enrolled from January 2012 and December 2012. NLR, and PLR were calculated from peripheral blood cell counts taken at pre-treatment. Optimal cutoff values of NLR and PLR were determined on the basis of receiver operating characteristic curve analysis. Overall survival (OS), progression-free survival(PFS), distant metastasis-free survival (DMFS) and loco-regional recurrence-free survival ( LRFS) rates were compared according to NLR and PLR level respectively. Multivariate analysis was performed to assess the prognostic value of NLR and PLR.

Results

The 5-year estimated OS, PFS, LRFS and DFS were 87.2, 77.8, 96.9, and 86.2%, respectively. Our results shows that the NLR was significantly associated with T-stage (P < 0.05), N-stage (P < 0.05) and tumor stage(P < 0.05). PLR was significantly associated with T-stage (P < 0.05) and tumor stage(P < 0.05). NLR was an independent prognostic indicator for OS (HR: 3.259, P = 0.004), PFS (HR:7.093, P < 0.001), DMFS (HR: 6.576, P = 0.003), except for PLR. In subgroup analysis, adjuvant chemotherapy had no significantly improved survival for patients with high NLR.

Conclusions

NLR is a strong prognostic factor for NPC patients. NLR might not be a useful indicator for selection of treatment strategies for loco-regionally advanced NPC.

Neutrophil-lymphocyte ratios in the prognostication of primary non-metastatic nasopharyngeal carcinoma

INTRODUCTION

Nasopharyngeal carcinoma is a geographically and racially variable disease which has a high incidence in Malaysia. Based on current concepts in tumour related inflammation the inflammatory marker, neutrophil-lymphocyte ratio was tested to find its relationship with prognosis in nasopharyngeal carcinoma.

OBJECTIVE

To investigate the effect of the neutrophil-lymphocyte ratio on prognosis in non-metastatic primary nasopharyngeal carcinoma patients and to further refine the cut off between high and low neutrophil-lymphocyte ratio values.

METHODS

The medical charts of patients with histologically confirmed nasopharyngeal carcinoma from 1st January 2005 until 31st December 2009 were reviewed retrospectively and theneutrophil-lymphocyte ratio was calculated to see if there was any association between their higher values with higher failure rates.

RESULTS

Records of 98 patients (n=98) were retrieved and reviewed. Only neutrophil-lymphocyte ratio (p=0.004) and tumor node metastasis staging (p=0.002) were significantly different between recurrent and non-recurrent groups, with the neutrophil-lymphocyte ratio being independent of tumor node metastasis staging (p=0.007). Treatment failure was significantly higher in the high neutrophil-lymphocyte ratio group (p=0.001). Disease free survival was also significantly higher in this group (p=0.000077).

CONCLUSION

High neutrophil-lymphocyte ratio values are associated with higher rates of recurrence and worse disease free survival in non-metastatic nasopharyngeal carcinoma patients undergoing primary curative treatment.

Neutropenia during the First Cycle of Induction Chemotherapy Is Prognostic for Poor Survival in Locoregionally Advanced Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma: A Real-World Study in an Endemic Area

Purpose

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of neutropenia during the first cycle of induction chemotherapy (IC-1) on survival in locoregionally advanced nasopharyngeal carcinoma (LANPC).

Materials and Methods

Eligible patients (n=545) with LANPC receiving IC+concurrent chemoradiotherapy were included. Based on nadir neutrophil afterIC-1, all patientswere categorized into three groups: no/grade 1-2/grade 3-4 neutropenia. Five-year overall survival (OS) and disease-free survival (DFS) were compared between groups and subgroups stratified by IC regimen. We also explored the occurrence of IC-1-induced myelosuppression events and the minimal value of post-treatment neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (post-NLRmin). Univariate/multivariate analyses were performed to investigate the effect of IC-1-induced neutropenia, timing of neutropenia, number of myelosuppression events, and high post-NLRmin on OS/DFS.

Results

Grade 1-2/grade 3-4 neutropeniawere associatedwith poorer OS/DFS than no neutropenia (all p &lt; 0.05); OS/DFS were not significantly different between patients experiencing grade 1-2 vs. 3-4 neutropenia. Neutropenia had no significant effect on OS/DFS in patients receiving docetaxel-cisplatin-5-fluorouracil (TPF). Grade 1-2 (grade 3-4) neutropenia negatively influenced OS/DFS in patients receiving cisplatin-5-fluorouracil (PF) (PF and docetaxel-cisplatin [TP]; all p &lt; 0.05). Neutropenia, two/three myelosuppression events, and high post-NLRmin (≥ 1.33) was most frequent on days 5-10, second and third week of IC-1, respectively. After adjustment for covariates, IC-1-induced neutropenia, two/three myelosuppression events, and post-NLRmin ≥ 1.33were validated as negative predictors of OS/DFS (all p &lt; 0.05); timing of neutropenia had no significant effect.

Conclusion

Occurrence of neutropenia, number of myelosuppression events, and high post-NLRmin during PF/TP IC-1 have prognostic value for poor survival in LANPC.

Prognostic role of neutrophil-lymphocyte ratio in nasopharyngeal carcinoma: A meta-analysis

Background

Inflammatory markers are used to predict prognosis of nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC). Previous reports of neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) and NPC mortality are inconsistent. This study aimed to quantify the prognostic impact of NLR on NPC.

Methods

The primary outcome was overall survival (OS), and the secondary outcomes were disease-specific survival (DSS), progression-free survival (PFS) and distant metastasis-free survival (DMFS). We systematically searched electronic databases, identified articles reporting an association between NLR and NPC prognosis. Hazard ratios (HRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were extracted, and pooled HRs for each outcome were estimated using random effect models.

Results

Nine studies enrolling 5397 patients were included in the analyses. NLR greater than the cutoff value was associated with poor overall survival (HR 1.51, 95% CI 1.27–1.78), disease-specific survival (HR 1.44, 95% CI 1.22–1.71), progression-free survival (HR 1.53, 95% CI 1.22–1.90), and distant metastasis-free survival (HR 1.83, 95% CI 1.14–2.95).

Conclusions

Elevated NLR predicts worse OS, DSS, PFS and DMFS in patients with NPC.

Prognostic value of neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio for nasopharyngeal carcinoma: A meta-analysis

BACKGROUND

The prognostic value of the neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) for nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) remains controversial. This study was designed to provide a more accurate assessment of the prognostic value, based on a meta-analysis.

METHODS

A comprehensive search for relevant studies published before June 2016 was performed using the PubMed, Cochrane Library, and Web of Science databases. The correlations of NLR with overall survival (OS) and progression-free survival (PFS) were evaluated for NPC. Hazard ratios (HRs) and associated 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were calculated to estimate the effects.

RESULTS

Six studies with a total of 4359 NPC patients were included in this meta-analysis. The pooled results showed that, among patients with NPC, elevated pretreatment NLR was associated with poorer OS (HR = 1.74, 95% CI = 1.45-2.10) and PFS (HR = 1.48, 95% CI = 1.30-1.69). Subgroup analyses indicated that the use of different cut-off values for NLR (<3 or ≥3) did not affect the consistent prognostic value of NLR for OS or PFS. No significant heterogeneity or publication bias was observed among the included studies for OS or PFS (P > .05).

CONCLUSIONS

This meta-analysis indicates that elevated pretreatment NLR might be a valuable predicative biomarker of poor prognosis for patients with NPC.

Pretreatment hematologic markers as prognostic factors in patients with nasopharyngeal carcinoma: A systematic review and meta-analysis

BACKGROUND

Pretreatment hematologic parameters of the inflammatory response, including lymphocyte, neutrophil, and platelet counts, neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR), lymphocyte-to-monocyte ratio, and platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio, have emerged as prognostic factors for patients with cancer. This systematic review and meta-analysis aimed to summarize the association between the hematologic markers and prognosis of nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC).

METHODS

A systematic search of PubMed, Google Scholar, MEDLINE, EMBASE, Web of Science, and the Cochrane Library was conducted up to April 2016. Hazard ratios (HRs) with 95% confidence intervals (95% CIs) were extracted and synthesized to examine prognostic outcomes including cancer-specific survival (CSS), overall survival (OS), progression-free survival (PFS), distant metastasis-free survival, and local relapse-free survival (LRFS).

RESULTS

Fourteen studies comprising 11,651 NPC patients were ultimately included, and all eligible studies were conducted in East Asia. The OS, CSS, PFS, distant metastasis-free survival, and LRFS risks differed among patients according to hematologic marker levels. All of the parameters were associated with prognostic outcomes in patients with NPC. NLR and lymphocyte counts were most commonly reported. A high NLR was significantly associated with poor NPC prognosis (pooled HR 1.42, 95% CI 1.21-1.67 for CSS; pooled HR 1.77, 95% CI 1.41-2.23 for OS; pooled HR 1.67, 95% CI 1.36-2.06 for PFS; pooled HR 1.64, 95% CI 1.15-2.34 for LRFS). High lymphocyte count indicated favorable NPC prognosis (pooled HR 0.72, 95% CI 0.64-0.81 for OS; pooled HR 0.71, 95% CI 0.56-0.91 for PFS).

CONCLUSIONS

Meta-analysis indicated that NLR and lymphocyte counts could be prognostic predictors in NPC for East Asian population. Patients with a high NLR or low lymphocyte count had poor prognosis. However, due to the limitation of included population, the conclusion was limited to East Asian patients only.

Prognostic Significance of Neutrophil to Lymphocyte Ratio, Lymphocyte to Monocyte Ratio, and Platelet to Lymphocyte Ratio in Patients with Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma

The peripheral blood neutrophil to lymphocyte ratio (NLR), lymphocyte to monocyte ratio (LMR), and platelet to lymphocyte ratio (PLR) have been reported to correlate with the prognosis of many malignancies. This study evaluated the prognostic value of pretreatment NLR, LMR, and PLR in nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC). A retrospective analysis of clinical and pathological data of 140 NPC patients without distant metastasis during initial treatment was conducted to identify correlations between NLR, LMR, and PLR and clinicopathological features, overall survival, and progression-free survival. Cox proportional hazard regression analysis was used to reveal the independent factors affecting the prognosis of NPC patients. NLR was associated with T staging, N staging, and overall clinical stage grouping of the NPC patients (P < 0.05). NLR ≥ 2.28, LMR < 2.26, and PLR ≥ 174 were significantly associated with a relatively short overall survival (P < 0.05). In addition, NLR ≥ 2.28 was significantly associated with a relatively short progression-free survival (P < 0.05). Cox proportional hazard regression analysis showed that NLR was an independent prognostic factor in NPC. Pretreatment NLR, LMR, and PLR might be a useful complement to TNM staging in the prognostic assessment of NPC patients.

Role of Monocyte Count and Neutrophil-to-Lymphocyte Ratio in Survival of Oral Cancer Patients

Introduction Inflammation seems to play a critical role in the development and progression of numerous cancers. Peripheral blood leukocyte count is an easily assessable parameter of systemic inflammatory response. Objective The aim of this study was to investigate whether the pretreatment leukocyte counts can predict the prognosis of patients with oral cavity cancer. Methods Medical records of 471 oral cavity cancer patients diagnosed between January 2007 and December 2008 were retrospectively analyzed. Receiver operating characteristic curve analysis and Cox proportional hazards analyses were applied to evaluate the associations of leukocyte counts with overall survival. Results The overall five year's survival of the cohort was found to be 49.4%. On univariate analysis, elevated monocyte count (≥500/mm3) and neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) (>2.38) were associated with poor overall survival (OS) (p = 0.001 and 0.000, respectively). Multivariate Cox proportional hazard analysis showed that higher monocyte and NLR levels were significant independent predictors of worse OS (HR = 1.385, 95% CI = 1.049 - 1.829; p < 0.05 and HR = 1.392, 95% CI = 1.045 - 1.855; p < 0.05, respectively). The advanced overall stage and lymph nodal involvement were also independent indicators for poor OS. Conclusions Higher pretreatment monocyte and NLR levels are independent predictors of poor prognosis for patients with oral cavity cancer. Thus, these easily accessed variables can serve as a potent marker to predict the outcomes of oral cancer patients.

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.

An inflammatory biomarker-based nomogram to predict prognosis of patients with nasopharyngeal carcinoma: an analysis of a prospective study

Chronic inflammation plays an important role in tumor progression. The aim of this analysis was to evaluate whether inflammatory biomarkers such as the Glasgow prognostic score (GPS), the neutrophil‐lymphocyte ratio (NLR), the platelet‐lymphocyte ratio (PLR), and the lymphocyte‐monocyte ratio (LMR) could predict the prognosis of nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC). In this analysis, pretreatment GPS, NLR, PLR, LMR of 388 patients who were diagnosed as nonmetastatic NPC and recruited prospectively in the 863 Program No. 2006AA02Z4B4 were assessed. Of those, the 249 cases enrolled between December 27th 2006 and July 31st 2011 were defined as the development set. The rest 139 cases enrolled between August 1st 2011 and July 31st 2013 were defined as the validation set. The variables above were analyzed in the development set, together with age, gender, Karnofsky performance score, T stage, and N stage, with respect to their impact on the disease‐specific survival (DSS) through a univariate analysis. The candidate prognostic factors then underwent a multivariate analysis. A nomogram was established to predict the DSS, by involving the independent prognostic factors. Its predction capacity was evaluated through calculating Harrell's concordance index (C‐index) in the validation set. After multivariate analysis for the development set, age (≤50 vs. >50 years old), T stage (T1–2 vs. T3–4), N stage (N0–1 vs. N2–3) and pretreatment GPS (0 vs. 1–2), NLR (≤2.5 vs. >2.5), LMR (≤2.35 vs. >2.35) were independent prognostic factors of DSS (P values were 0.002, 0.008, <0.001, 0.004, 0.018, and 0.004, respectively). A nomogram was established by involving all the factors above. Its C‐index for predicting the DSS of the validation set was 0.734 (standard error 0.056). Pretreatment GPS, NLR, and LMR were independent prognostic factors of NPC. The nomogram based on them could be used to predict the DSS of NPC patients.

Neutrophils and Granulocytic MDSC: The Janus God of Cancer Immunotherapy

Neutrophils are the most abundant circulating blood cell type in humans, and are the first white blood cells recruited at the inflammation site where they orchestrate the initial immune response. Although their presence at the tumor site was recognized in the 1970s, until recently these cells have been neglected and considered to play just a neutral role in tumor progression. Indeed, in recent years neutrophils have been recognized to play a dual role in tumor development by either assisting the growth, angiogenesis, invasion, and metastasis or by exerting tumoricidal action directly via the secretion of antitumoral compounds, or indirectly via the orchestration of antitumor immunity. Understanding the biology of these cells and influencing their polarization in the tumor micro- and macro-environment may be the key for the development of new therapeutic strategies, which may finally hold the promise of an effective immunotherapy for cancer.

Pretreatment count of peripheral neutrophils, monocytes, and lymphocytes as independent prognostic factor in patients with head and neck cancer

BACKGROUND

The purpose of this study was to analyze the prognostic value of pretreatment count of peripheral neutrophils, lymphocytes, monocytes, and neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) in patients with head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC).

METHODS

Local, regional, and distant recurrence-free survival and disease-specific survival were analyzed according to the count of neutrophils, lymphocytes, monocytes, and NLR.

RESULTS

We observed a decrease in disease-specific survival as the quartile category of neutrophils, monocytes, and NLR increased. In the case of lymphocytes, patients in the lower quartile had lower disease-specific survival. Considering the disease-specific survival as the dependent variable, a recursive partitioning analysis classified the patients according to the neutrophil and monocyte counts.

CONCLUSION

High pretreatment count of peripheral neutrophils and/or monocytes was independently related with worse prognosis in patients with HNSCC. Classification based on pretreatment neutrophil and monocyte counts enabled the identification of different prognostic profiles. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Head Neck 39: 219-226, 2017.

Neoadjuvant radiotherapy plus radical surgery for locally advanced stage III/IV oral cancer: Analysis of prognostic factors affecting overall survival

OBJECTIVES

Preoperative radiotherapy followed by surgery is an effective treatment option for solid tumors including locally advanced squamous cell cancers of the head and neck region. Histopathologic response to radiation has been shown to be associated with survival. However, the relative prognostic importance of regression grade compared to other potential biomarkers has not been established yet.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

One-hundred forty-four oral squamous cell carcinoma patients with stage III/IV disease were included in this analysis. Patients had received preoperative radiotherapy (RT) up to 50Gy total dose in combination with 5-Fluorouracil (5-FU)/Mitomycin C (MMC) or with Cetuximab, followed by radical surgery six to eight weeks later. Outcome data were obtained from the patient's files. Survival rates were estimated by the Kaplan-Meyer method. Cox-proportional-hazard regression models were used to compare the risk of death among patients stratified according to risk factors.

RESULTS

Five-year overall survival (OS) was 58% in the presented collective. Regression grade 4 (HR 3.58; p<0.001) was most significantly associated with reduced survival, followed by elevated neutrophils (HR 2.22; p=0.01), the combination of elevated neutrophils plus elevated CRP (HR 2.40; p=0.01), and elevated CRP alone (HR 1.74; p=0.03). In a multivariate analysis, the regression grade remained the most influential predictor of outcome (HR 4.23; p<0.001).

CONCLUSION

In a comparative analysis, tumor response to pre-operative radiotherapy remains the strongest prognostic factor for treatment outcome, while elevated CRP, as well as neutrophils, were also found to be of significance.

The Pretreatment Neutrophil/Lymphocyte Ratio Is Associated with All-Cause Mortality in Black and White Patients with Non-metastatic Breast Cancer

The pretreatment neutrophil/lymphocyte ratio (NLR), derived from differential white blood cell counts, has been previously associated with poor prognosis in breast cancer. Little data exist, however, concerning this association in Black patients, who are known to have lower neutrophil counts than other racial groups. We conducted a retrospective cohort study of 236 Black and 225 non-Hispanic White breast cancer patients treated at a single institution. Neutrophil and lymphocyte counts were obtained from electronic medical records. Univariate and multivariate Cox regression models were used to determine hazard ratios (HRs) and 95% confidence intervals (95% CIs) of all-cause mortality and breast cancer-specific mortality in relation to pretreatment NLR. Overall, there were no associations between an elevated pretreatment NLR (NLR ≥3.7) and all-cause or breast cancer-specific mortality. Among patients without metastasis at the time of diagnosis, an elevated pretreatment NLR was independently associated with all-cause mortality, with a multivariable HR of 2.31 (95% CI: 1.10-4.86). Black patients had significantly lower NLR values than White patients, but there was no evidence suggesting racial heterogeneity of the prognostic utility of NLR. Pretreatment NLR was an independent predictor of all-cause mortality but not breast cancer-specific mortality in non-metastatic breast cancer patients.

The preoperative platelet-lymphocyte ratio versus neutrophil-lymphocyte ratio: which is better as a prognostic factor in oral squamous cell carcinoma?

OBJECTIVE

Recent studies have shown that the presence of systemic inflammation and platelet status correlate with poor survival in various cancers. The aim of this study was to evaluate the prognostic value of the preoperative platelet-lymphocyte ratio (PLR) and the neutrophil-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) in patients with oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) undergoing surgery.

METHODS

In this study, 306 patients with OSCC who had surgery were enrolled. The optimal cutoff value of PLR and NLR was determined by receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis. The prognostic significance of both markers was determined by uni- and multivariate analysis.

RESULTS

The results showed that high NLR and PLR were classified using a cutoff value of 2.7 and 135, respectively, based on ROC curve analysis. Only PLR was associated with decreased disease-free survival [hazard ratio (HR) = 2.237; 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.401-3.571; p = 0.001] and overall survival [HR = 2.022; 95% CI: 1.266-3.228; p = 0.003] by both uni- and multivariate analysis.

CONCLUSION

The preoperative PLR is superior to NLR as an independent indicator in predicting disease-free survival and overall survival in patients who undergo oral cancer resection for OSCC.

Systemic inflammation is an independent predictive marker of clinical outcomes in mucosal squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck in oropharyngeal and non-oropharyngeal patients

Background

Currently there are very few biomarkers to identify head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) cancer patients at a greater risk of recurrence and shortened survival. This study aimed to investigate whether a marker of systemic inflammation, the neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR), was predictive of clinical outcomes in a heterogeneous cohort of HNSCC cancer patients.

Methods

We performed a retrospective analysis to identify associations between NLR and clinicopathological features to recurrence free survival (RFS) and overall survival (OS). Univariate analysis was used to identify associations and selected variables were included in multivariable Cox regression analysis to determine predictive value.

Results

A total of 145 patients with stage I-IV HNSCC that had undergone radiotherapy were analysed. Seventy-six of these patients had oropharyngeal cancer and 69 had non-oropharyngeal HNSCC and these populations were analysed separately. NLR was not associated to any clinicopathological variable. On univariate analysis, NLR showed associations with RFS and OS in both sub-populations. Multivariable analysis showed patients with NLR > 5 had shortened OS in both sub-populations but NLR > 5 only predicted RFS in oropharyngeal patients. Poor performance status predicted OS in both sub-populations and current smokers had shortened OS and RFS in non-oropharyngeal patients.

Conclusions

The results show patients with NLR > 5 predict for shorter overall survival. Further prospective validation studies in larger cohorts are required to determine the clinical applicability of NLR for prognostication in HNSCC patients.

Electronic supplementary material

The online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12885-016-2089-4) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.