Association between absolute lymphocyte count and overall mortality in patients with surgically resected gastric cancer

Low Absolute Lymphocyte Count Correlates with Lymph Node Metastases and Worse Survival of Patients with Gastric Cancer

BACKGROUND

Several studies have found that the absolute lymphocyte (ALC) or neutrophil count predicts the survival of patients with solid tumors, and that the neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio and the prognostic nutritional index are useful markers of gastric cancer prognosis. However, it remains unclear whether the ALC is prognostic of lymph node (LN) metastasis in patients with gastric cancer. In this study, we aimed to explore the impact of ALC on prognosis and distinctive clinical characteristics in patients with gastric cancer.

PATIENTS AND METHODS

The medical records of patients with gastric adenocarcinomas who underwent radical gastrectomy with curative intent at Seoul St. Mary's Hospital and Yeouido St. Mary's Hospital between January 2010 and December 2017 were reviewed. Of these, 4149 patients for whom preoperative white blood cell, neutrophil, and lymphocyte counts were available were enrolled.

RESULTS

In all 4149 patients, ALC gradually decreased as the pN stage increased. Those with an ALC of less than 1360 cells/μL were defined as a low-ALC group, and advanced cT and cN stages were the strongest risk factors for LN metastasis in both univariate and multivariate analyses; undifferentiated tumor histology and a low ALC were also significant risk factors. Patients of all stages in the ALC-low group exhibited poorer prognoses. The ALC-low group also exhibited a higher recurrence rate in a greater proportion of LNs.

CONCLUSIONS

In patients with gastric cancer, as the preoperative ALC decreases, the incidence of LN metastasis increases. A low ALC is associated with a high recurrence rate, particularly in LNs.

Early absolute lymphocyte count was associated with one-year mortality in critically ill surgical patients: A propensity score-matching and weighting study

BACKGROUND

Absolute lymphocyte count (ALC) is a crucial indicator of immunity in critical illness, but studies focusing on long-term outcomes in critically ill patients, particularly surgical patients, are still lacking. We sought to explore the association between week-one ALC and long-term mortality in critically ill surgical patients.

METHODS

We used the 2015-2020 critical care database of Taichung Veterans General Hospital (TCVGH), a referral hospital in central Taiwan, and the primary outcome was one-year all-cause mortality. We assessed the association between ALC and long-term mortality by measuring hazard ratios (HRs) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs). Furthermore, we used propensity score-matching and -weighting analyses, consisting of propensity score matching (PSM), inverse probability of treatment weighting (IPTW), and covariate balancing propensity score (CBPS), to validate the association.

RESULTS

A total of 8052 patients were enrolled, with their one-year mortality being 24.2%. Cox regression showed that low ALC was independently associated with mortality (adjHR 1.140, 95% CI 1.091-1.192). Moreover, this association tended to be stronger among younger patients, patients with fewer comorbidities and lower severity. The association between low ALC and mortality in original, PSM, IPTW, and CBPS populations were 1.497 (95% CI 1.320-1.697), 1.391 (95% CI 1.169-1.654), 1.512 (95% CI 1.310-1.744), and 1.511 (95% CI 1.310-1.744), respectively. Additionally, the association appears to be consistent, using distinct cutoff levels to define the low ALC.

CONCLUSIONS

We identified that early low ALC was associated with increased one-year mortality in critically ill surgical patients, and prospective studies are warranted to confirm the finding.

Can the Pathological Response in Patients with Locally Advanced Gastric Cancer Receiving Neoadjuvant Treatment Be Predicted by the CEA/Albumin and CRP/Albumin Ratios?

Background: The purposes of neoadjuvant chemotherapy are to tumor size to improve the tumor removal rate, extend survival, and prevent metastasis. In this study, the importance of CRP/albumin ratio and CEA/albumin ratio in the prediction of neoadjuvant treatment response in gastric cancer patients was evaluated. Methods: This study retrospectively included 135 gastric cancer patients who received neoadjuvant chemotherapy at Çukurova University Balcalı Hospital between January 2018 and December 2023. Preoperative CRP/albumin and CEA/albumin ratios were compared according to treatment response and multivariate logistic regression analysis was performed to determine the potential importance of these ratios in predicting pathological response. Results: The mean age of the 135 patients was 58.79 ± 10.83 (min = 26-max = 78). The CRP/albumin and CEA/albumin ratios were found to be significantly lower in patients who did not respond to neoadjuvant therapy. Each 1-unit increase in the CRP/albumin ratio was associated with a 1.16-fold decrease in the odds of pathological complete response to neoadjuvant therapy. Both CRP/albumin and CEA/albumin ratios were found to be significant in distinguishing neoadjuvant therapy response. The optimal cut-off value was 2.74 for the CRP/albumin ratio (sensitivity = 60%, specificity = 78.4%) and 1.40 for the CEA/albumin ratio (sensitivity = 74.2%, specificity = 67.6%). Values below these cut-off points favored neoadjuvant therapy response. Pathological complete response to neoadjuvant therapy was 4.75 times higher in patients with a CRP/albumin ratio below 2.74 and 5.14 times higher in patients with a CEA/albumin ratio below 1.40. Conclusions: Findings demonstrate that in patients with locally advanced gastric cancer receiving neoadjuvant treatment, CRP/Albumin and CEA/Albumin ratios are significant markers of pathological response.

The Global Leadership Initiative on Malnutrition criteria for diagnosis of malnutrition and outcomes prediction in emergency abdominal surgery

OBJECTIVES

Malnutrition has adverse postoperative outcomes, especially in emergency surgery. Among the numerous tools for nutritional assessment, this study aims to investigate malnutrition diagnosed by Global Leadership Initiative on Malnutrition criteria and the Global Leadership Initiative on Malnutrition predictive value for outcomes after emergency abdominal surgery.

METHODS

This was a prospective observational study. Among the 468 patients undergoing emergency abdominal surgery admitted to a department of emergency surgery from June 2020 to December 2021, 53 patients were not eligible for enrollment, and 19 patients had missing data. Thus, the final number of participants was 396. Muscle mass was evaluated by skeletal muscle index at the third lumbar vertebra on computed tomography scans, and the lower quartile was defined as the threshold of muscle mass reduction. The associations of Global Leadership Initiative on Malnutrition, Global Leadership Initiative on Malnutrition (muscle mass reduction excluded), and skeletal muscle index with in-hospital mortality, postoperative complications, and postoperative stay were evaluated using χ2. In addition, confounding factors were screened, regression models were established, and the Global Leadership Initiative on Malnutrition predictive value was analyzed for clinical outcome. Ethical approval was obtained from the appropriate department.

RESULTS

Malnutrition was observed in 19.9% of the total 396 patients based on the Global Leadership Initiative on Malnutrition and in 12.4% on the Global Leadership Initiative on Malnutrition (muscle mass reduction excluded). Sarcopenia by skeletal muscle index was found in 24.7% of patients. Univariate analysis indicated that in-hospital mortality, postoperative complications, infective complication rate, and postoperative hospital stay were significantly higher in malnourished and sarcopenic patients. Multivariate analysis found that malnutrition diagnosed by the Global Leadership Initiative on Malnutrition was predictive for complications, infective complications, and postoperative stay (total postoperative complications: odds ratio = 3.620; 95% CI, 1.635-8.015; P = 0.002; infective complications: odds ratio = 3.127; 95% CI, 1.194-8.192; P = 0.020; and postoperative stay: regression coefficient = 2.622; P = 0.022). The Global Leadership Initiative on Malnutrition (muscle mass reduction excluded) identified postoperative complications and postoperative stay (total postoperative complications: odds ratio = 3.364; 95% CI, 1.247-9.075; P = 0.017 and postoperative stay: regression coefficient = 3.547; P = 0.009). Sarcopenia by skeletal muscle index was a risk factor for postoperative complications (odds ratio = 3.366; 95% CI, 1.587-7.140; P = 0.002).

CONCLUSION

The Global Leadership Initiative on Malnutrition and Global Leadership Initiative on Malnutritison (muscle mass reduction excluded) had predictive value for adverse clinical outcomes due to malnutrition in patients undergoing emergency abdominal surgery.

Correlation between branched-chain amino acids intake and total lymphocyte count in head and neck cancer patients: a cross-sectional study

BACKGROUND

Cellular immunity as reflected by total lymphocyte count (TLC) has been proven to be related to overall survival rate cancer patients. Lymphocyte proliferation is regulated, to some extent, by nutritional factor. Branched chain amino acid (BCAA) is documented as one of numerous nutrients that play important role in lymphocyte proliferation through its effect on protein synthesis and DNA replication. Many studies describe the correlation between BCAA and TLC in hepatic cancer patients. This study emphasized the observation of that links in head and neck cancer patients.

METHODS

Eighty-five subjects were included in final analysis, aged 18-75, mostly male, with head and neck cancer who had not received treatment participated in this cross-sectional study at the Dr. Cipto Mangunkusumo General Hospital's radiation and medical haematology oncology clinic. The BCAAs intake was assessed using a semi-quantitative food frequency questionnaire. Flow cytometry method was used to quantify TLC.

RESULTS

Overall, the subjects' nutritional status mostly was considered normal, with the median intake of 1505 (800-3040) kcal/day of energy and mean of 73.96 ± 23.39 g/day of protein. Moreover, subjects' average BCAA intake was 10.92 ± 0.48 g/day. Meanwhile, 17.6% of subjects were found to have low TLC level. From thorough analysis, we did not find a strong correlation between BCAA level and TLC (r = 0.235, p = 0.056).

CONCLUSION

In participants with head and neck cancer who had not received chemoradiotherapy, there is no correlation between BCAA intake and TLC. The contribution of non-BCAA amino acids from dietary sources to lymphocyte proliferation requires further investigation.

TRIAL REGISTRATION

Retrospectively registered, with clinical trial number NCT05226065 on February 7th 2022.

Combined with prognostic nutritional index and IgM for predicting the clinical outcomes of gastric cancer patients who received surgery

Objective

Although the survival rate of patients who undergo surgery for gastric cancer has greatly improved, still many patients have a poor prognosis. This retrospective study aimed to investigate the predictive ability of the PNI-IgM score, a combined prognostic nutritional index (PNI), and immunoglobulin M (IgM), on the prognosis of patients undergoing surgery for gastric cancer.

Methods

340 patients with gastric cancer who underwent surgery from January 2016 to December 2017 were selected. The PNI-IgM score ranged from 1 to 3: score of 1, low PNI (< 48.45) and low IgM (< 0.87); score of 2, low PNI and high IgM, or high PNI and low IgM; score of 3, high PNI and high IgM. We compared the differences in disease-free survival (DFS) and overall survival (OS) among the three groups, while univariate and multivariate analyses calculated prognostic factors for DFS and OS. In addition, the nomograms were constructed based on the results of multivariate analysis to estimate the 1-, 3- and 5-year survival probability.

Results

There were 67 cases in the PNI-IgM score 1 group, 160 cases in the PNI-IgM score 2 group, and 113 cases in the PNI-IgM score 3 group. The median survival times of DFS in the PNI-IgM score group 1, the PNI-IgM score group 2, and the PNI-IgM score group 3 were 62.20 months, not reached, and not reached, and 67.57 months vs. not reached vs. not reached in three groups for OS. Patients in the PNI-IgM score group 1 had a lower DFS than the PNI-IgM score group 2 (HR = 0.648, 95% CI: 0.418-1.006, P = 0.053) and the PNI-IgM score group 3 (HR = 0.337, 95% CI: 0.194-0.585, P < 0.001). In stratified analysis, PNI-IgM score 1 had a worse prognosis in the age < 60 years group and CA724 < 2.11 U/m group.

Conclusion

PNI-IgM score is a novel combination of nutritional and immunological markers that can be used as a sensitive biological marker for patients with gastric cancer who undergo surgery. The lower the PNI-IgM score, the worse the prognosis.

The value of pretreatment glucose-to-lymphocyte ratio for predicting survival of metastatic gastric cancer

Aim: To demonstrate the prognostic importance of glucose-to-lymphocyte ratio (GLR) in metastatic gastric cancer (mGC). Methods: Retrospectively, 159 mGC patients were enrolled. Kaplan–Meier curve and Cox regression analysis were used to determine the prognostic value of the systemic immune inflammation index (SII), neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR), prognostic nutritional index (PNI) and GLR. Results: Progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS) were associated with NLR, PNI, SII and GLR by univariate analysis. Moreover, OS was associated with Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group performance status and the chemotherapy regimen. In multivariate analysis, only GLR was found to be independently prognostic for both PFS and OS. Conclusion: In mGC, GLR may be a new prognostic marker for both OS and PFS.

What is hemoglobin, albumin, lymphocyte, platelet (HALP) score? A comprehensive literature review of HALP's prognostic ability in different cancer types

Since its inception, the Hemoglobin, Albumin, Lymphocyte, Platelet Score (HALP) has gained attention as a new prognostic biomarker to predict several clinical outcomes in a multitude of cancers. In our review, we searched PubMed for articles between the first paper on HALP in 2015 through September 2022, yielding 32 studies in total that evaluated HALP's association with various cancers, including Gastric, Colorectal, Bladder, Prostate, Kidney, Esophageal, Pharyngeal, Lung, Breast, and Cervical cancers, among others. This review highlights the collective association HALP has with demographic factors such as age and sex in addition to TNM staging, grade, and tumor size. Furthermore, this review summarizes HALP's prognostic ability to predict overall survival, progression-free survival, recurrence-free survival, among other outcomes. In some studies, HALP has also been able to predict response to immunotherapy and chemotherapy. This review article also aims to serve as a comprehensive and encyclopedic report on the literature that has evaluated HALP as a biomarker in various cancers, highlighting the heterogeneity surrounding HALP's utilization. Because HALP requires only a complete blood count and albumin - already routinely collected for cancer patients - HALP shows potential as a cost-effective biomarker to aid clinicians in improving outcomes for immuno-nutritionally deficient patients.

A Novel Nomogram Combined the Aggregate Index of Systemic Inflammation and PIRADS Score to Predict the Risk of Clinically Significant Prostate Cancer

Background

This study is aimed at constructing a nomogram to predict the risk of clinically significant prostate cancer (csPCa) based on the aggregate index of systemic inflammation (AISI) and prostate imaging-reporting and data system version (PIRADS) score.

Methods

Clinical data on patients who had undergone initial prostate biopsy from January 2019 to December 2021 were collected. Patients were randomized in a 7 : 3 ratio to the training cohort and the validation cohort. Potential risk factors for csPCa were identified by univariable and multivariate logistic regression. Nomogram was conducted with these independent risk factors, and calibration curves, the receiver operating characteristic (ROC), and decision curve analysis (DCA) were employed to assess the nomogram's ability for prediction.

Results

A total of 1219 patients were enrolled in this study. Multivariate logistic regression identified that age, AISI, total prostatic specific-antigen (tPSA), free to total PSA (f/tPSA), prostate volume (PV), and PIRADS score were potential risk predictors of csPCa, and the nomogram was developed based on these factors. The area under the curve (AUC) of the training cohort and validation cohort was 0.884 (95% CI: 0.862-0.906) and 0.899 (95% CI: 0.867-0.931). The calibration curves showed that the apparent curves were closer to the ideal curves. The DCA results revealed that the nomogram model seemed to have clinical application value per DCA.

Conclusion

The nomogram model can efficiently predict the risk of csPCa and may assist clinicians in determining if a prostate biopsy is necessary.

Nomogram Based on Hemoglobin, Albumin, Lymphocyte and Platelet Score to Predict Overall Survival in Patients with T3-4N0-1 Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma

Purpose

There is still uncertainty regarding the prognosis of nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) based on hemoglobin, albumin, lymphocytes, and platelets (HALP) score. The aim of this study was to build and verify a nomogram using HALP score to investigate the prognostic value of NPC and identify low-risk patients in T3-4N0-1 NPC to guide treatment options.

Patients and methods

A total of 568 NPC patients with stage T3-4N0-1M0 were recruited in the study, who were given either concurrent chemoradiotherapy (CCRT) or induction chemotherapy (IC) plus CCRT. The prognostic factors of overall survival (OS) were picked by Cox proportional hazards regression analysis to generate a nomogram, which appraised by discrimination, calibration and clinical utility. Patients were stratified according to risk scores calculated by the nomogram, and compared to the 8th TNM staging system using the Kaplan-Meier methods.

Results

Multivariate analysis showed that TNM stage, Epstein-Barr virus DNA (EBV DNA), HALP score, lactate dehydrogenase-to-albumin ratio (LAR) and systemic inflammatory response index (SIRI) were independent prognostic indicators for OS, and these factors contained in the nomogram. The nomogram demonstrated a significant enhancement over the 8th TNM staging system in terms of assessing OS (C-index, 0.744 vs 0.615 in the training cohort, P < 0.001; 0.757 vs 0.646 in the validation cohort, P = 0.002). Calibration curves displayed good agreement and the stratification in high-risk and low-risk groups resulted in a significant divergence of Kaplan-Meier curves for OS (P < 0.001). In addition, the decision analysis (DCA) curves confirmed satisfactory discriminability and clinical utility.

Conclusion

The HALP score was an independent prognostic factor for NPC. The prognostic function of the nomogram for T3-4N0-1 NPC patients was more accurate compared to the 8th TNM system, facilitating personalized treatment planning.

Prognostic nutritional index for predicting the clinical outcomes of patients with gastric cancer who received immune checkpoint inhibitors

OBJECTIVE

Although the application of immunotherapy in gastric cancer has achieved satisfactory clinical effects, many patients have no response. The aim of this retrospective study is to investigate the predictive ability of the prognostic nutrition index (PNI) to the prognosis of patients with gastric cancer who received immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs).

MATERIALS AND METHODS

Participants were 146 gastric cancer patients with ICIs (PD-1/PD-L1 inhibitors) or chemotherapy. All patients were divided into a low PNI group and a high PNI group based on the cut-off evaluated by the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve. We contrasted the difference in progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS) in two groups while calculating the prognosis factors for PFS and OS by univariate and multivariate analyses. Moreover, the nomogram based on the results of the multivariate analysis was constructed to estimate the 1- and 3-year survival probabilities.

RESULTS

There were 41 (28.1%) cases in the low PNI group and 105 (71.9%) cases in the high PNI group. The median survival time for PFS in the low PNI group and high PNI group was 12.30 months vs. 33.07 months, and 18.57 months vs. not reached in the two groups for OS. Patients in low PNI group were associated with shorter PFS and OS in all patients [Hazard ratio (HR) = 1.913, p = 0.013 and HR = 2.332, p = 0.001]. Additionally, in subgroup analysis, low PNI group cases also had poorer PFS and OS, especially in patients with ICIs. In addition, the multivariate analysis found that carbohydrate antigen 724 (CA724) and TNM stage were independent prognostic factors for PFS. At the same time, indirect bilirubin (IDBIL), CA724, PNI, and TNM stage were independent prognostic factors for OS.

CONCLUSION

Prognostic nutrition index was an accurate inflammatory and nutritional marker, which could predict the prognosis of patients with gastric cancer who received ICIs. PNI could be used as a biomarker for ICIs to identify patients with gastric cancer who might be sensitive to ICIs.

Is Lymphocyte C-Reactive Protein Ratio Useful for Predicting Survival in Patients with Non-Metastatic Soft Tissue Sarcoma?

Background: Recently, the lymphocyte-to-CRP ratio (LCR) was found to have a prognostic role in many cancers. However, the clinical significance of LCR in patients with soft tissue sarcoma (STS) has not yet been established. This study aimed to determine whether LCR can predict disease-specific survival (DSS) and event-free survival (EFS) in patients with STS. Methods: In this study, 132 patients were enrolled. The mean follow-up periods were 76.5 months. Blood examinations were performed prior to treatment for all patients. Results: The 5-year DSS in patients with higher and lower LCR was 86.5% and 52.8%, respectively (p < 0.001). Patients with lower LCR had worse survival than those with higher LCR. The 5-year EFS in patients with higher and lower LCR was 66.2% and 31.2%, respectively (p < 0.001). On Receiver operating characteristic analysis, however, there was no significant difference in the area under curve (AUC) between CRP level (AUC = 0.72) and LCR (AUC = 0.711). Conclusions: LCR may be a prognostic factor for predicting oncological events in multivariate analysis, although ROC analysis could not show the superiority of LCR to CRP for predicting oncological outcomes in patients with STS.

Preoperative low absolute lymphocyte count to fibrinogen ratio correlated with poor survival in nonmetastatic colorectal cancer

Background

Preoperative absolute lymphocyte count (LC) and fibrinogen (FIB) are useful prognostic indicators in colorectal cancer (CRC). However, the prognostic value of the LC to FIB ratio (LFR) has never been addressed.

Methods

A total of 189 nonmetastatic CRC patients after resection were enrolled retrospectively. The significance of the LFR in predicting disease-free survival (DFS) and overall survival (OS) was estimated by receiver operating characteristic curve analysis, and the prognostic efficacy was compared with individual LC and FIB. Patients were assigned to LFR low or high subgroups. Differences in clinicopathological features among these subgroups were calculated, and the survival differences of these subgroups were determined by the Kaplan-Meier analysis. A Cox proportional hazards model was applied to test the risk factors for survival.

Results

Taking 0.54 as the optimal cutoff point, the LFR had sensitivities of 79.70% and 86.40% and specificities of 52.30% and 51.00% in predicting the DFS and OS, respectively. A total of 109/189 (57.67%) patients were assigned to the LFR low group, and these patients were more likely to be characterized by criteria such as T₃ + T₄ (P < 0.01), stage 3 (P < 0.01), tumor deposits (P = 0.01), high CEA (P < 0.01), or CA19-9 levels (P = 0.04). And they also displayed worse DFS (log rank = 18.57, P < 0.01) and OS (log rank = 20.40, P < 0.01) than the high LFR group. Finally, the LFR was independently associated with inferior DFS (HR = 0.32, 95% CI: 0.16–0.61, P < 0.01) and OS (HR = 0.23, 95% CI: 0.09–0.55, P < 0.01).

Conclusions

The LFR is a useful prognostic indicator in nonmetastatic CRC, and patients with a relatively low LFR had poor survival.

Predictive value of neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio for distant metastasis in gastric cancer patients

As a systemic inflammatory marker, the significance of NLR in predicting tumor prognosis and early lymph node metastasis is well known, including gastric cancer (GC). However, whether NLR can reflect GC metastasis status remains to be explored. We retrospectively enrolled 1667 GC patients treated in our hospital from December 2010 to December 2018. Patients were grouped according to the presence or absence of metastases. Receiver operating characteristics (ROC) curve analysis was used to evaluate the diagnostic efficacy of markers in assessing GC metastasis. Then we conducted a joint ROC curve analysis. The effects of clinicopathological parameters on GC metastasis were assessed using multiple logistic regression analysis. 743 (44.6%) patients were diagnosed with metastatic GC. Patients with GC metastases have younger age, higher CEA, CA19-9, CA72-4 and NLR. Based on the comparison of AUC, NLR has diagnostic efficacy comparable to that of GC markers. The AUC of NLR combined with GC markers had significantly higher predicting efficacy than that without combination for assessing peritoneal metastasis (P = 0.013), osseous metastasis (P = 0.017) and hepatic metastasis (P < 0.001). In multiple logistic regression analysis, age, NLR, CEA, CA19-9 and CA72-4 were found to be independently associated with GC metastasis (all P < 0.05). NLR was a risk factor of GC metastasis. Combining CEA, CA19-9, CA72-4 and NLR could better predict metastases in GC.

Splenic and PB immune recovery in neoadjuvant treated gastrointestinal cancer patients

In recent years, immune therapy, notably immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICI), in conjunction with chemotherapy and surgery has demonstrated therapeutic activity for some tumor types. However, little is known about the optimal combination of immune therapy with standard of care therapies and approaches. In patients with gastrointestinal (GI) cancers, especially pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC), preoperative (neoadjuvant) chemotherapy has increased the number of patients who can undergo surgery and improved their responses. However, most chemotherapy is immunosuppressive, and few studies have examined the impact of neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NCT) on patient immunity and/or the optimal combination of chemotherapy with immune therapy. Furthermore, the majority of chemo/immunotherapy studies focused on immune regulation in cancer patients have focused on postoperative (adjuvant) chemotherapy and are limited to peripheral blood (PB) and occasionally tumor infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs); representing a minority of immune cells in the host. Our previous studies examined the phenotype and frequencies of myeloid and lymphoid cells in the PB and spleens of GI cancer patients, independent of chemotherapy regimen. These results led us to question the impact of NCT on host immunity. We report herein, unique studies examining the splenic and PB phenotypes, frequencies, and numbers of myeloid and lymphoid cell populations in NCT treated GI cancer patients, as compared to treatment naïve cancer patients and patients with benign GI tumors at surgery. Overall, we noted limited immunological differences in patients 6 weeks following NCT (at surgery), as compared to treatment naive patients, supporting rapid immune normalization. We observed that NCT patients had a lower myeloid derived suppressor cells (MDSCs) frequency in the spleen, but not the PB, as compared to treatment naive cancer patients and patients with benign GI tumors. Further, NCT patients had a higher splenic and PB frequency of CD4+ T-cells, and checkpoint protein expression, as compared to untreated, cancer patients and patients with benign GI tumors. Interestingly, in NCT treated cancer patients the frequency of mature (CD45RO+) CD4+ and CD8+ T-cells in the PB and spleens was higher than in treatment naive patients. These differences may also be associated, in part with patient stage, tumor grade, and/or NCT treatment regimen. In summary, the phenotypic profile of leukocytes at the time of surgery, approximately 6 weeks following NCT treatment in GI cancer patients, are similar to treatment naive GI cancer patients (i.e., patients who receive adjuvant therapy); suggesting that NCT may not limit the response to immune intervention and may improve tumor responses due to the lower splenic frequency of MDSCs and higher frequency of mature T-cells.

Preoperative Absolute Lymphocyte Count to Carcinoembryonic Antigen Ratio Is a Superior Predictor of Survival in Stage I to III Colorectal Cancer

Background:

Preoperative absolute lymphocyte count (ALC) and carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) are useful prognostic indicators in colorectal cancer (CRC); however, the role of the ALC-to-CEA ratio (LCR) has been less addressed.

Methods:

A total of 189 stage I to III CRC patients who underwent radical resection were enrolled retrospectively. The significance of the LCR in predicting disease-free survival (DFS) and overall survival (OS) was calculated and compared with other markers based on ALC. The DFS and OS differences among the low- and high-LCR subgroups and risk factors for the outcome were estimated by Kaplan–Meier analysis and the Cox proportional hazards model, respectively.

Results:

Taking 0.28 as the cutoff point, the LCR has a sensitivity and a specificity of 75.60% and 77.00%, respectively, in predicting OS. The prognostic efficacy of LCR was significantly superior to that of other markers based on ALC for predicting DFS and OS. A total of 34.92% (66/189) of patients displayed a low LCR (<0.28), and these patients were more likely to present poor cell differentiation (P = .03), tumor deposits (P < .01) and advanced T (P < .01) and liver metastasis (P = .02). Patients with a low LCR had significantly worse DFS (Log Rank = 34.98, P < .01) and OS (Log Rank = 43.17, P < .01) than those with a high LCR. The LCR was an independent prognostic factor for both DFS (hazard ratio (HR) = 0.35, 95% confidence interval (CI): 0.20-0.62, P < .01) and OS (HR = 0.18, 95% CI: 0.08-0.37, P < .01).

Conclusions:

The LCR is a superior predictor of survival in stage I to III CRC, and patients with a low LCR have an inferior outcome; however, additional studies are required to validate its prognostic role.

Prognostic Score System Using Preoperative Inflammatory, Nutritional and Tumor Markers to Predict Prognosis for Gastric Cancer: A Two-Center Cohort Study

INTRODUCTION

Gastric cancer (GC) is the fourth leading cause of cancer-related death worldwide. Our study aimed to investigate the prognostic value of preoperative inflammatory, nutritional and tumor markers and develop an effective prognostic score system to predict the prognosis of GC patients.

METHODS

We retrospectively analyzed 1587 consecutive GC patients who received curative gastrectomy from two medical centers. A novel prognostic score system was proposed based on independently preoperative markers associated with overall survival (OS) of GC patients. A nomogram based on prognostic score system was further established and validated internally and externally.

RESULTS

Based on multivariate analysis in the training set, a novel BLC (body mass index-lymphocyte-carbohydrate antigen 19-9) score system was proposed, which showed an effective predictability of OS in GC patients (log-rank P < 0.001). Moreover, receiver-operating characteristic (ROC) analysis showed that BLC had better performance in predicting OS than the traditional prognostic markers. The C-index of the BLC based-nomogram was 0.710 (95% CI 0.686-0.734), and the areas under ROC curves for predicting 3- and 5-year OS were 0.781 (95% CI 0.750-0.813) and 0.755 (95% CI 0.723-0.786), respectively, which were higher than those of tumor node metastasis (TNM) staging system alone. The calibration curve for probability of 3- and 5-year OS rate showed a good fitting effect between prediction by nomogram and actual observation. Verification in the internal and external validation sets showed results consistent with those in the training set.

CONCLUSIONS

The BLC combining inflammatory, nutritional and tumor markers was an independent prognostic predictor for GC patients, and the nomogram based on BLC could accurately predict the personalized survival of patients with GC.