Evaluation of the prognostic value of derived neutrophil/lymphocyte ratio in early stage non-small cell lung cancer patients treated with stereotactic ablative radiotherapy

Inflammation index predicts radiation-induced lung injury and prognosis in lung tumors treated with stereotactic body radiation therapy

PURPOSE

To investigate the effect of inflammation-based indexes in predicting radiation pneumonitis (RP) and prognosis in lung tumor patients treated with stereotactic body radiation therapy (SBRT).

MATERIALS AND METHODS

The data of one hundred and seventy-two patients with 272 lung lesions from November 2015 to December 2020 were retrospectively analyzed. Pretreatment hematological indexes including platelet count, neutrophil count, and lymphocyte count were collected before treatment. Systemic immune-inflammation index (SII), neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR), and platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio (PLR) were calculated. The receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve was established to predict the RP and overall survival of patients, and the Youden index was calculated to determine the cutoff values of SII, NLR, and PLR before radiotherapy.

RESULTS

Pretreatment SII, NLR, and PLR could predict RP in lung tumor patients treated with SBRT, the optimal cutoff values of SII, NLR, and PLR were 355.38, 2.04, and 141.09, respectively. Pretreatment PLR could predict survival and the optimal cutoff value of PLR was 166.83, patients with a PLR > 166.83 predict worse overall survival (OS) (P < 0.001). The 1-year and 2-year OS for patients with a PLR ≤ 166.83 were 96.3% and 82.4%, while for those with a PLR > 166.83 were 82.0% and 58.5%, respectively.

CONCLUSION

In lung tumor patients treated with SBRT, pretreatment SII, NLR, and PLR can effectively predict RP and a higher PLR predicts poor OS. These inflammation-based indexes could serve as reliable and convenient predictors to guide treatment for physicians in clinical practice.

Neutrophil-lymphocyte, platelet-lymphocyte and lymphocyte-monocyte ratios may not be useful markers to assess disease activity in rheumatoid arthritis: A STROBE-compliant article

The associations among the neutrophil-lymphocyte ratio (NLR), platelet-lymphocyte ratio (PLR) and lymphocyte-monocyte ratio (LMR) and disease activity in rheumatoid arthritis remains unclear.To evaluate these indicators as potential markers of disease activity in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA).This cross-sectional study included 547 adult patients with RA. The patients were divided into two groups according to the disease activity score (DAS) system: remission and disease activity. Differences in the NLR, PLR and LMR of the two groups were assessed. Correlations were analyzed using Spearman analysis, and receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves were used to identify the sensitivity, specificity, and optimal cutoff values to differentiate active RA patients from inactive RA patients.There was a statistically significant difference in the NLR (4.2 ± 3.2 vs 3.4 ± 2.4, P = .034) and PLR (222.3 ± 136.4 vs 176.9 ± 89.8, P = .006) between the two groups, but not for the LMR (3.0 ± 1.8 vs 3.4 ± 2.4, P = .115). In addition, the DAS28 and traditional inflammatory markers, including ESR and CRP, were weakly positively correlated with the NLR and PLR. Based on the ROC curves, the NLR (sensitivity 31.8%, specificity 77.8%) and PLR (sensitivity 57.3%, specificity 63.9%) were less valuable than the ESR (sensitivity 67.2%, specificity 91.7%) and CRP (sensitivity 76.2%, specificity 91.7%) for differentiating inactive RA patients from active RA patients due to low sensitivity and specificity and combining NLR or PLR also cannot significantly improved the diagnostic value of ESR and CRP.NLR, PLR and LMR may not be an useful independent diagnostic or complementary marker for disease activity in RA patients.

Neutrophil/lymphocyte, platelet/lymphocyte and monocyte/lymphocyte ratios in mood disorders

Major depressive disorder (MDD) and bipolar disorders (BDs), the most severe types of mood disorders (MDs), are considered as among the most disabling illnesses worldwide. Several studies suggested that inflammatory neuroinflammation might be involved in the pathophysiology of MDs, while reporting increasing data on the relationships between these processes and classical neurotransmitters, hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal axis (HPA), and neurotrophic factors. The assessment of neutrophil/lymphocyte ratio (NLR), platelet/lymphocyte ratio (PLR) and monocyte/lymphocyte ratio (MLR) in peripheral blood represents a simple method to evaluate the inflammatory status. The aim of the present paper was to review the literature on the possible relationships between NLR, PLR and MLR in MDs, and to comment on their possible wider use in clinical research. Thirty-five studies were included in the present review. The majority of them higher values of these parameters, particularly NLR values, in patients with MDs, when compared to healthy subjects. The increase would appear more robust in patients with BD during a manic episode, thus indicating that it could be considered as both state and trait markers. In addition, increased NLR and PLR levels seem to represent prognostic elements for the early discovery of post-stroke depression. The findings of the present review would indicate the need to carry our further studies in this field. In particular, NLR, PLR and MLR seem to be promising tools to detect economically and easily the activation of the inflammatory system, and to perhaps evaluate the etiology and course of MDs. Again, they could suggest some information to better understand the relationship between inflammatory and cardiovascular disease and MDs, and thus, to provide clinical implications in terms of management and treatment.