Prognostic Impact of Indicators of Systemic Inflammation and the Nutritional Status of Patients with Resected Carcinoma of the Ampulla of Vater: A Single-Center Retrospective Study

Effect of MELD-Na score on overall survival of periampullary cancer

Periampullary cancers have a short overall survival (OS), and many prognostic factors have been studied for this purpose. They usually present with biliary obstruction, which negatively affects the liver, kidney, immune system, and cardiovascular system. This study aimed to investigate the effect of MELD-Na scores on OS in patients undergoing pancreaticoduodenectomy due to periampullary cancer. Patients who underwent pancreaticoduodenectomy due to periampullary cancer between January 2010 and January 2021 were included in the study. After applying the exclusion criteria, 80 of the 124 patients were included in the study. The demographic, laboratory, and pathologic data of the patients were analyzed retrospectively. Univariate analysis showed that MELD-Na score at admission, age-adjusted Charlson Comorbidity Index, adjuvant treatment, portal vein resection, lymphovascular invasion (LVI), T-stage, and tumor location were significantly associated with OS (p < 0.1). In multivariate analysis, MELD-Na score at admission (HR: 1.051, 95% CI [1.004-1.101]; p = 0.033), adjuvant treatment (HR: 4.717, 95% CI [2.371-9.383]; p < 0.001), LVI (HR: 2.473, 95% CI [1.355-4.515]; p = 0.003), and tumor location (HR: 2.380, 95% CI [1.274-4.445]; p = 0.007) were independent risk factors for OS. MELD-Na score, adjuvant treatment, LVI, and tumor location were independent risk factors for the OS of periampullary cancer. The MELD-Na score may be used to predict OS for patients undergoing pancreaticoduodenectomy due to periampullary cancer.

Prognostic impact of the Controlling Nutritional Status Score in patients with biliary tract cancer: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Background

Biliary tract cancer (BTC) is a malignancy associated with unfavorable outcomes. Advanced BTC patients have a propensity to experience compromised immune and nutritional status as a result of obstructive jaundice and biliary inflammation. Currently, there is a lack of consensus on the impact of the Controlling Nutritional Status (CONUT) score in the context of BTC prognosis. The purpose of this study is to conduct a meta-analysis on the association between CONUT and the prognosis of patients suffering from BTC.

Methods

A defined search strategy was implemented to search the PubMed, Embase, and Web of Science databases for eligible studies published until March 2023, with a focus on overall survival (OS), relapse-free survival/recurrence-free survival(RFS), and relevant clinical characteristics. The prognostic potential of the CONUT score was evaluated using hazard ratios (HRs) or odds ratios (ORs) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs).

Results

In this meta-analysis, a total of 1409 patients from China and Japan were involved in 9 studies. The results indicated that the CONUT score was significantly correlated with worse OS (HR=2.13, 95% CI 1.61-2.82, P<0.0001) and RFS (HR=1.83, 95% CI 1.44-2.31, P<0.0001) in patients with BTC. And, the analysis showed that a high CONUT score was significantly associated with clinical characteristics such as jaundice (OR=1.60, 95% CI=1.14-2.25, P=0.006), poorly differentiated tumor (OR=1.43, 95% CI=1.03-1.99, P=0.03), pT3 and 4 stage of the tumor (OR=1.87, 95% CI=1.30-2.68, P=0.0007), and complications of Clavien-Dindo classification grade IIIa or higher (OR=1.79, 95% CI=1.03-3.12, P=0.04).

Conclusion

This meta-analysis indicates that a high CONUT score can serve as a significant prognostic indicator for survival outcomes among patients diagnosed with BTC.

The prognostic effect of the systemic immune-inflammation index on overall survival of periampullary cancer

OBJECTIVE

The systemic immune-inflammation index (SII) is used to assess survival in many cancers. SII has been examined separately in pancreatic head, ampulla, and distal choledochus cancers, and different cut-off values were found. Detecting the location of periampullary cancer before surgery may be difficult or misleading. This study aimed to investigate the use of SII in predicting overall survival (OS) with periampullary cancers regardless of tumor location.

METHODS

Between January 2010 and January 2020, 163 patients who underwent pancreaticoduodenectomy for periampullary tumors were assessed. After applying the exclusion criteria, data from 116 patients with cancer who underwent pancreaticoduodenectomy were included in the study.

RESULTS

OS was compared using Kaplan-Meier curves. The prognostic significance of baseline SII and other factors were assessed in univariate and multivariate analyses using the Cox proportional hazard regression model. Univariate analysis demonstrated that age ≥60.5 years (hazard ratio [HR]: 2.042, 95% CI: [1.355-3.078]; p = 0.001), male sex (HR: 1.863, 95% CI: [1.231-2.821]; p = 0.003), tumor in the pancreatic head vs. ampulla (HR: 2.150, 95% CI: [1.364-3.389]; p = 0.001), tumor in the pancreatic head vs. distal choledochus (HR: 1.945, 95% CI: [1.091-3.472]; p = 0.024), N (+) stage (HR: 1.868, 95% CI: [1.223-2.854]; p = 0.004), total bilirubin level >0.35 (HR: 2.131, 95% CI: [1.245-3.649]; p = 0.006), NLR >2.13 (HR: 1.911, 95% CI: [1.248-2.925]; p = 0.003), and SII >704 (HR: 1.966, 95% CI: [1.310-2.950]; p = 0.001) were significantly associated with OS. Multivariate analysis revealed that SII >704 (HR: 2.375; p < 0.001), age ≥ 60.5 years (HR: 2.728; p < 0.001), N-stage positivity (HR: 3.431; p < 0.001), and tumor in the pancreatic head vs. ampulla (HR: 2.801; p < 0.001) were independently associated with poor survival. There was no difference between tumor locations in terms of SII (p = 0.206).

CONCLUSIONS

SII is an independent prognostic risk factor and may be a marker for predicting OS in patients with periampullary cancer. There was no statistical difference between the tumor locations in terms of SII. A single cut-off value of SII may be used for periampullary cancer survival without the need for a pathology specimen.

Preoperative controlling nutritional status score predicts systemic disease recurrence in patients with resectable biliary tract cancer

INTRODUCTION

This study aimed to evaluate the association between the preoperative Controlling Nutritional Status (CONUT) score, survival outcomes, and recurrence pattern in patients with resectable biliary tract cancer (BTC).

METHODS

A total of 224 BTC patients (gallbladder, n = 69; intrahepatic bile ducts, n = 26; perihilar bile ducts, n = 72; distal bile duct, n = 57) who underwent surgery with curative intent were enrolled. The best cutoff point of the preoperative CONUT score in discriminating survival was determined using χ2 scores. The sites of recurrence were subclassified as locoregional or distant.

RESULTS

Patients were subdivided into the CONUT-low (score ≤ 3, n = 156) and the CONUT-high (score > 3; n = 68) groups. In-hospital mortality occurred more frequently in the CONUT-high group than in the CONUT-low group (7.4% vs. 1.3%; p = 0.028). A high preoperative CONUT score was independently associated with worse overall survival (hazard ratio [HR] 1.906, p = 0.001), worse disease-specific survival (HR 1.840, p = 0.006), and worse recurrence-free survival (HR 1.680, p = 0.005). Recurrence developed in 110 (49.1%) patients. A high preoperative CONUT score was independently associated with a higher risk of distant recurrence (HR 2.245, p = 0.001), but not locoregional recurrence. The incidences of distant recurrence at 5 years were 55.4% and 34.2% in the CONUT-high and CONUT-low groups, respectively (p = 0.001).

CONCLUSIONS

The preoperative CONUT score independently predicts survival outcomes and may serve as a surrogate marker of aggressive systemic disease recurrence in patients with resectable BTC.

Early Recurrence in Resected Gallbladder Carcinoma: Clinical Impact and Its Preoperative Predictive Score

BACKGROUND

Surgical resection is the only potentially curative therapy for gallbladder carcinoma (GBC). However, the postoperative recurrence rate is high (approximately 50%), and recurrence occasionally develops early after surgery.

PATIENTS AND METHODS

A total of 139 patients who underwent macroscopically curative resection for GBC between 2002 and 2018 were retrospectively reviewed. Early recurrence (ER) was defined as recurrence within 6 months after surgery. Univariate and multivariate logistic regression analysis was performed using preoperative factors that may influence early recurrence, namely patient background factors, tumor markers, imaging findings, and body composition parameters obtained preoperatively, to create a predictive score for ER.

RESULTS

The median follow-up period was 21.9 months (range, 6.2-195.7 months). Postoperative recurrence was observed in 55 (39.6%) patients, of whom 14 (25.5%) developed ER. The median overall survival after surgery was 104.7 months for the non-ER group and 15.7 months for the ER group. On multivariate analysis, high carbohydrate antigen 19-9, low muscle attenuation, high visceral fat attenuation, liver invasion, and other organ invasion on preoperative computed tomography were identified as independent risk factors for ER. A preoperatively predictive scoring system for ER was constructed by weighting the above five factors. The nomogram showed an area under the curve of 0.881, indicating good predictive potential for ER.

CONCLUSIONS

ER in resected GBC indicates a very poor prognosis. The present preoperative scoring system can sufficiently predict ER and may be helpful in determining the optimal treatment strategies.