The ABO blood group predicts survival in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma in patients who ever smoked: a retrospective study from China

Correlation between ABO blood group and prognosis of hepatectomy for hepatitis B virus-associated hepatocellular carcinoma

BACKGROUND

The relationship between ABO blood group and prognosis of patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) remains unclear. We investigated the relationship between prognosis and ABO blood group in patients with hepatitis B-associated HCC after radical hepatectomy.

METHODS

The medical records of 874 patients with hepatitis B-associated HCC who underwent radical liver tumor resection were retrospectively collected. Cox proportional risk models were constructed for analysis, and the patient data were further balanced using propensity score matching (PSM) analysis to assess the impact of ABO blood group on the prognosis of patients with hepatitis B-associated HCC.

RESULTS

In univariate Cox regression analysis, the overall survival (OS) of non-A blood type group vs. A blood type group [hazard ratio (HR) (95% confidence interval [CI]) = 1.504 (1.003-2.255), P = 0.048], in multivariate Cox regression analysis the OS of non-A blood type group versus A blood type group [HR (95% CI) = 1.596 (1.054-2.417), P = 0.027]. After PSM, the baseline information was more balanced between the two groups, yielding the same results as above [HR (95% CI) = 1.550 (1.012-2.373), P = 0.044].

CONCLUSION

The difference in OS after radical hepatectomy in patients with hepatitis B-associated HCC was statistically significant in terms of ABO blood group, OS was lower in patients with non-A blood group than in patients with A blood group.

Prognostic Relationship Between the ABO Blood Groups and Metastatic Gastric Cancer

AIM

 Gastric cancer is one of the most common malignant tumors of the digestive system and has a poor prognosis. Since recurrence and distant metastasis are common in gastric cancer, it is important to use practical and reliable prognostic parameters. In this study, the prognostic relationship between the ABO blood groups and metastatic gastric cancer was investigated.

METHOD AND MATERIAL

 Data were collected by retrospectively scanning the files of 225 patients who were followed up with the diagnosis of metastatic gastric cancer in 2010-2022. The patients' demographic data (age, gender), tumor histopathology, tumor location, and ABO and Rh blood groups were evaluated.

RESULTS

 Of the patients, 138 (61.3%) were male and 87 (38.7%) were female. According to the distribution of the ABO system, blood group A was present in 109 (48.4%) patients, B in 33 (14.7%), AB in 20 (8.9%), and O in 63 (28%). Signet ring cell carcinoma, antrum tumor localization, and distant metastasis were more common in blood groups A and O. According to both the univariate and multivariate analyses, overall survival (OS) was statistically worse in patients with signet ring cell carcinoma and peritoneal metastasis (p < 0.05). The OS rate was the worst in blood group A and best in blood groups AB and B.

CONCLUSION

 In this study, blood group A presented as both a risk factor and a poor prognostic factor in the development of metastatic gastric cancer. In addition, signet ring cell histopathology and presence of metastasis were found to be more common in patients with blood group A and associated with a poor prognosis. Blood groups are inexpensive, easily available, and reliable parameters that can provide an idea about both prognosis and survival in gastric cancer. Therefore, they can serve as a guide for clinicians in the follow-up and evaluation of the prognosis of these patients.

ABO blood group distribution and risk of malignancy in patients undergoing resection for intraductal papillary mucinous neoplasm (IPMN)

BACKGROUND

The ABO blood type has been associated with risk of development of several malignancies, including pancreatic cancer. Data regarding IPMN is equivocal. To investigate this further, we analyzed the association between the ABO blood group and the presence of malignancy in a large cohort of resected IPMN and its influence in survival.

METHODS

819 patients who underwent pancreatic resection for IPMN in the Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) and Cambridge University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust (CUH) from January 1993 to December 2020 were identified from prospective institutional databases. Pathological characteristics and blood type were correlated.

RESULTS

The distribution of blood types A, B, AB and O was 384 (47%), 92 (11%), 44 (5%) and 299 (37%), respectively. This blood type distribution was different than the reference population of the MGH and the CUH, which is 55% non-O blood group, and 45% type O. There was a significant predominance of non-O blood types when compared with O-blood type in patients with malignant IPMN (i.e. patients with high-grade dysplasia and invasive cancer) (67% vs 33%, OR 1.31 95%CI: 0.98-1.75, p = 0.069). The association was stronger for IPMN with invasive cancer (OR 1.43 95%CI: 1.01-2.02, p = 0.039). Blood group did not influence survival.

CONCLUSION

Non-O blood type is associated with need for resection in IPMN and with presence of invasive carcinoma.

Association of ABO blood group with survival following pancreatoduodenectomy for pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma

BACKGROUND

Existing research suggests patients with blood group O are less likely to develop pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) compared to those with non-O blood groups, and that survival from PDAC may be affected by ABO blood type. This study assessed survival outcomes in PDAC patients who underwent pancreatoduodenectomy (PD) in one health system.

METHODS

From 2010 to 2017, demographic, operative, chemotherapy and survival data for patients undergoing PD at Emory Healthcare were reviewed. Patients with blood type AB were excluded due to small sample size. The relationship between ABO blood group and survival was analyzed using Kaplan-Meier survival curves and multivariate cox proportional regression analysis.

RESULTS

Of 449 PDAC patients assessed, 204 (45.4%), 60 (13.4%) and 185 (41.2%) were blood groups A, B and O, respectively. Patients were well matched in clinicopathologic characteristics. Median survival did not differ by blood group (p = 0.82), and this relationship remained insignificant on cox regression analysis (p = 0.15). On multivariate analysis, lymph node positivity (p < 0.001) and increasing age (p = 0.001) were associated with reduced survival.

CONCLUSION

In contrast to recent reports, this larger study found that blood group did not impact overall survival among patients undergoing PD for PDAC.

Clinical characteristics and survival of 5283 esophageal cancer patients: A multicenter study from eighteen hospitals across six regions in China

Objective

This study aimed to investigate the potential determining epidemiological and clinical risk factors affecting the survival of esophageal cancer (EC) patients across multiple hospitals in China.

Methods

This was a multicenter study comprising of newly diagnosed EC cases from Beijing, Hebei, Henan, Hubei, Zhejiang, and Guangdong Province of China. Their baseline characteristics and treatment methods data were collected from their medical records. The EpiData software was used for data quality control. The Kaplan‐Meier method was used to estimate their overall survival (OS), and the Cox's proportional hazard regression model was used to estimate hazard ratios (HR) and 95% confidence interval (CI).

Results

The 3‐ and 5‐year OS rates of the 5283 investigated EC patients were 49.98% and 39.07%, respectively. Their median survival was 36.00 months. The median survival time of females was longer than that of males (females vs. males: 45.00 vs. 33.00, P < 0.001). The 5‐year OS rate of patients who never‐smoked was higher than that of smokers (never‐smokers vs smokers: 40.73% vs. 37.84%, P = 0.001). There was no significant difference in the 5‐year OS rate between drinkers and never‐drinkers (drinkers vs never‐drinkers: 34.22% vs. 29.65%, P = 0.330). In multivariate analysis, pathological stage (stage II: HR = 1.80, 95% CI = 1.40‐2.31; stage III: HR = 2.62, 95% CI = 2.06‐3.34; stage IV: HR = 3.90, 95% CI = 2.98‐5.09), poor differentiation/undifferentiated (HR = 1.34, 95% CI = 1.11‐1.63), not married status (HR = 2.45, 95% CI = 1.49‐4.04), production and service personnel (HR = 1.36, 95% CI = 1.01‐1.83) and farming/fishing (HR = 1.40, 95% CI = 1.12‐1.76) were independent prognostic risk factors for poor EC survival. Tumors in the thoracic or abdominal part of the esophagus, female and family history of any cancer were independent factors predictive of a good EC OS.

Conclusion

Gender, marital status, occupation, family history of any cancer, tumor topographical site, differentiation status, and pathological stage were associated with the survival rate of EC. This study reveals important clinical characteristics of esophageal cancer patients in China and provides helpful information for their clinical management and surveillance.

ABO Blood Type and the Long-term Outcomes of Pancreatic Cancer

Objective The long-term effect of the ABO blood type on the clinical course of patients with pancreatic cancer (PC) is inconclusive. This study aimed to determine whether or not the ABO blood type influences the long-term outcomes of PC in Japanese patients. Methods The medical records of Japanese patients with PC were reviewed. Data, including the age, sex, and outcomes, from the Ehime Pancreato-Cholangiology Study Group were analyzed. Results The mean age of the 406 patients was 71.0±10.5 years, and 220 (54.2%) were men. A total of 44.6%, 20.7%, 22.4%, and 12.3% had blood type A, B, O, and AB, respectively. The median survival time (MST) of patients with A alleles was shorter than that of patients with non-A alleles (p=0.048), especially among those who underwent resection (p=0.031). In contrast, no marked difference in the MST was noted among those who underwent chemotherapy and palliative care. Finally, a multivariate analysis confirmed A alleles as an independent factor associated with the long-term outcome of PC (p<0.05 in 2 different models). Conclusion The ABO blood type influenced the long-term outcomes of Japanese patients with PC, presumably due to its impact on disease onset and tumor behavior.

Prognostic value of ABO blood group in a Chinese population in Northwest China region with curatively resected rectal cancer

A positive association between the ABO blood types and survival has been suggested in several malignancies. However, little is known about the relationship between ABO blood group and survival in rectal cancer patients. The aim of this study was to assess the role of the ABO blood types in predicting the prognosis of a Chinese population in Northwest China region with curatively resected rectal cancer. We retrospectively analyzed 1613 consecutive patients who underwent curative surgery for rectal cancer between June, 2011 and December, 2016. The relationship between the ABO blood types and overall survival (OS) was analyzed. The median follow-up period of the 1613 rectal cancer patients was 69.6 months with 1427 alive. There was a significance difference of survival among ABO blood groups (P=0.007). The mean overall survival (OS) of the blood type B patients was 70.8 months, O was 64.3, whereas the mean OS of the AB and A blood type patients was significantly lower, 58.4 months and 59.7 months respectively (P=0.007, log-rank test). Compared with patients with A and AB blood types, patients with blood type B and O were more likely to have better survival(P=0.001). A blood groups were associated with significantly decreased overall survival in rectal cancer patients (hazard ratio = 1.263; 95% confidence interval = 0.776-2.054, P =0.010). In order to confirm our above results, we performed the same investigation in an independent cohort from another hospital of 505 Chinese patients and get the similar results. Our study showed that ABO blood group is associated with survival in Northwest Chinese patients with rectal cancer and the blood type B and O were favourable prognostic factors for patients with rectal cancer.

Association of ABO Blood Groups and Risk of Gastric Cancer

OBJECTIVE

This study sought to investigate the relationship between ABO blood groups and the risk of gastric cancer as well as clinical pathological parameters and prognosis.

METHODS

Gastric cancer patient data were collected from January 1995 to January 2012 at Jilin Cancer Hospital, and the blood group information of the blood donors at Jilin City Blood Center was recorded. The relationships between ABO blood group and both clinicopathological parameters and the risk of gastric cancer were analyzed retrospectively. The impact of ABO blood type on the 5-year survival rate of patients with gastric cancer was evaluated through outpatient and telephone interviews.

RESULTS

(1) Compared with the healthy population, the frequency distribution of gastric cancer patients with the A blood group was significantly increased (χ² = 4.708, P = 0.000), whereas the frequency distribution of gastric cancer patients with the AB blood group was significantly decreased (χ² = 9.630, P = 0.002). However, there was no significant difference in the distributions of the B blood group and O blood group (P > 0.05). (2) The risk of gastric cancer in people with the A blood group was higher, whereas the risk of gastric cancer in people with the AB blood group was lower. There was no significant difference in the risk of gastric cancer between type B and type O patients (P > 0.05). (3) The ABO blood group was not related to pathological factors, including the size of the gastric tumor or the T stage or N stage of the disease (P > 0.05). (4) Univariate analysis results showed that the degree of differentiation, tumor size, T stage, lymph node metastasis, and type O blood were factors affecting the 5-year survival rate of gastric cancer patients (P < 0.05). Multivariate analysis results showed that tumor size, T stage, lymph node metastasis, and O blood group were independent prognostic factors. The 5-year survival rate for gastric cancer was significantly better in patients with type O blood (hazard ratio = 0.97, 95% confidence interval = 1.67-3.92).

CONCLUSION

(1) The risk of gastric cancer was higher in patients with the A blood group and lower in those with the AB blood group. (2) The ABO blood group showed no significant effect on the clinicopathological parameters of gastric cancer. (3) The O blood group may be a prognostic factor for gastric cancer patients.

Interaction Between Prediabetes and the ABO Blood Types in Predicting Postsurgical Esophageal Squamous Cell Carcinoma-Specific Mortality: The FIESTA Study

Background: We aimed to investigate the interaction between prediabetes and the ABO blood types in predicting esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC)-specific mortality by analysing data from the FIESTA study on normal/prediabetic patients with ESCC.

Methods: Total 1,857 normal/prediabetic patients with ESCC who underwent three-field lymphadenectomy between January 2000 and December 2010 and survived hospitalization were analyzable, with follow-up beginning in 2000 and ending in 2015.

Results: At the end of the follow-up, there were 1,161 survivors and 696 non-survivors. The follow-up time ranged from 0.5 to 180 months. The cumulative survival rates in normal patients were obviously better than in prediabetic patients. The cumulative survival rates were significantly higher in normal patients than in prediabetic patients for the blood types O and A (Log-rank test P < 0.05), while no significance was detected for the blood types B and AB. Adjusted risk estimates for ESCC-specific mortality for prediabetic patients relative to normal patients were statistically significant in the blood type B⁻ group (hazard ratio [HR]: 1.71; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.33–2.20; P < 0.001), but not in the blood type B⁺ group (HR: 1.12; 95% CI: 0.77–1.64; P = 0.5544).

Conclusions: Our findings indicate that prediabetes can predict the significant risk of ESCC-specific mortality in Chinese Han patients with the blood types O and A.

Can 9q34.2 rs633862 polymorphism predict survival in epithelial ovarian cancer?

Objective

Our previous genome-wide association study (GWAS) identified that the ABO rs633862 variant in chromosome 9q34.2 was associated with the risk of epithelial ovarian cancer (EOC) in Chinese Han women. The aim of the present study was to evaluate its prognostic effect on EOC.

Methods

A total of 669 EOC patients were enrolled for the genotyping of rs633862 variant in 9q34.2. We used Kaplan–Meier survival curves, univariate and multivariate Cox proportional hazard models to evaluate the association of rs633862 with overall survival (OS) in EOC patients.

Results

We found that rs633862 variant AG/GG genotypes were significantly associated with a longer OS by using univariate Cox proportional hazards regression analysis, compared with the rs633862 AA genotype (HR = 0.69, 95% CI [0.49–0.98], p = 0.035), albeit with a boardline significance in the multivariate analysis. Similar findings were observed in the subgroup of high-grade serous ovarian carcinoma. Further expression quantitative trait loci (eQTL) analysis indicated that the rs633862 AA genotype was associated with an increased level of ABO mRNA expression (p = 1.8 × 10⁻¹¹).

Conclusions

Supplementary to the previous GWAS, our study provides additional evidence on the prognostic value of the 9q34.2 rs633862 variant in EOC patients, and this variant may function by regulating the ABO mRNA expression.

Blood type AB predicts promising prognosis in gastric cancer patients with positive preoperative serum CEA

Little is known about association between ABO blood groups and tumor markers in gastric cancer (GC) patients. The aim of the present study was to assess the prognostic value of ABO blood groups in GC patients with different levels of preoperative serum carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA).From September 2008 to April 2015, a total of 3234 GC patients who received radical gastrectomy were retrospectively analyzed. The clinicopathological characteristics including ABO blood groups and preoperative CEA were recorded. The prognostic value of ABO blood groups within different levels of serum CEA was analyzed.Overall, the ratio of male to female patients was 3.5:1; the median age was 57.4 years (range 20-87). The median overall survival (OS) for GC patients with blood type A, B, AB, and O were 52.6, 52.8, 53.8, and 53.6 months, respectively. There was no significant difference for the survival of patients among the 4 groups (P = .736). Also, no significant difference was found among the OS of the 4 blood types with negative (P = .875) and positive (P = .131) preoperative serum CEA. Further, we found that the OS of patients with positive preoperative serum CEA and blood type AB was significantly higher than that with blood type non-AB (P = .026). For patients with positive preoperative serum CEA, multivariate analysis showed that ABO blood groups were an independent prognostic factor.Blood type AB was a favorable prognostic factor for GC patients with positive preoperative serum CEA.

Prognostic role of ABO blood type in patients with extranodal natural killer/T cell lymphoma, nasal type: a triple-center study

BACKGROUND

The prognostic significance of ABO blood type for lymphoma is largely unknown. We evaluated the prognostic role of ABO blood type in patients with extranodal natural killer (NK)/T-cell lymphoma (ENKTL).

METHODS

We retrospectively analyzed clinical data of 697 patients with newly diagnosed ENKTL from three cancer centers. The prognostic value of ABO blood type was evaluated using Kaplan-Meier curves and Cox proportional hazard models. The prognostic values of the International Prognostic Index (IPI) and the Korean Prognostic Index (KPI) were also evaluated.

RESULTS

Compared with patients with blood type O, those with blood type non-O tended to display elevated baseline serum C-reactive protein levels (P = 0.038), lower rate of complete remission (P = 0.005), shorter progression-free survival (PFS, P < 0.001), and shorter overall survival (OS, P = 0.001). Patients with blood type O/AB had longer PFS (P < 0.001) and OS (P = 0.001) compared with those with blood type A/B. Multivariate analysis demonstrated that age >60 years (P < 0.001), mass ≥5 cm (P = 0.001), stage III/IV (P < 0.001), elevated serum lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) levels (P = 0.001), and blood type non-O were independent adverse predictors of OS (P = 0.001). ABO blood type was found to be superior to both the IPI in discriminating patients with different outcomes in the IPI low-risk group and the KPI in distinguishing between the intermediate-to-low- and high-to-intermediate-risk groups.

CONCLUSIONS

ABO blood type was an independent predictor of clinical outcome for patients with ENKTL.

Relationship between ABO blood group and clinicopathological factors and their effect on the survival of Japanese patients with esophageal squamous cell carcinoma

PURPOSE

Several studies have evaluated the association between ABO blood group and the prognosis of various types of cancer; however, little is known about the relationship between ABO blood group and esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (SCC). We investigated how ABO blood group and clinicopathological characteristics are related to the survival of Japanese patients with esophageal SCC.

METHODS

We reviewed the medical records of 181 patients who underwent surgery for esophageal SCC between June, 2004 and December, 2015 and analyzed the association between ABO blood group and clinicopathological factors. Clinicopathological factors were also evaluated by univariate and multivariate analyses for possible association with survival.

RESULTS

The prevalence of each blood group was as follows: A, 35.5%; B, 22.4%; O, 32.8%; and AB, 8.2%. The 5-year overall survival of all patients was 37.1%. Patients with non-type B blood had significantly worse 5-year overall survival than those with type B blood (30.2 vs. 58.8%, P < 0.05).

CONCLUSIONS

ABO blood groups were associated with the survival of Japanese patients with esophageal SCC. Patients with non-B blood groups had significantly worse overall survival than those with the B blood group.

Prognostic Correlations between ABO Blood Group and Pre-Treatment Plasma Epstein-Barr Virus DNA in Patients with Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma Receiving Intensity-Modulated Radiotherapy

Purpose

The objective of this study is to assess the prognostic value of ABO blood group in nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) treated by intensity-modulated radiotherapy (IMRT).

Patients and Methods

We retrospectively reviewed the data on 1397 patients with non-metastatic, newly diagnosed NPC treated using IMRT. Patient survival between different ABO blood groups were compared using log-rank test. Cox hazards model was adopted to establish independent prognostic factors.

Results

In our study, the distribution of the A, B, AB and O blood groups was 26.6% (372/1397), 26.2% (366/1397), 5.2% (73/1397) and 42.0% (586/1397), respectively. The cut-off value of pre-treatment Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) DNA based on disease-free survival (DFS) was 1355 copies/ml (area under curve [AUC], 0.649; sensitivity, 0.76; specificity, 0.496) for the whole cohort. Estimated four-year DFS, overall survival (OS), distant metastasis-free survival (DMFS) and locoregional relapse-free survival (LRRFS) rates were 81.7%, 89.2%, 89.4% and 92.3% for blood group A; 82.1%, 89.3%, 89.0% and 92.0% for group B; 83.3%, 88.1%, 86.2% and 95.5% for group AB, 80.9%, 90.7%, 88.4% and 90.2% for group O (P > 0.05 for all rates). Multivariate analysis revealed ABO blood group was not an independent prognostic factor for DFS, OS, DMFS or LRRFS (P > 0.05 for all rates) after adjusting for plasma EBV DNA in either the whole cohort or subgroup analysis by gender.

Conclusions

The prognostic value of ABO blood group may be limited for patients with NPC in the era of IMRT, and no substantial correlation between ABO blood group and plasma EBV DNA was observed.

ABO blood group is a predictor of survival in patients with laryngeal cancer

Background

Whether the ABO blood group is associated with the survival of patients with laryngeal cancer remains unknown. The purpose of this study was to investigate the association between the ABO blood group and clinicopathologic characteristics of patients with laryngeal cancer and assess whether the ABO blood group was associated with prognosis.

Methods

We analyzed the records of 1260 patients with laryngeal cancer who underwent curative treatment at Sun Yat-sen University Cancer Center between January 1993 and December 2009. The Chi-square test was used to assess the relationship between the ABO blood group and clinicopathologic characteristics. The Kaplan–Meier method was used to estimate 3-, 5-, and 10-year overall survival (OS) rates. The Cox proportional hazards model was used in univariate and multivariate analyses of OS.

Results

No significant association was found between the ABO blood group and clinicopathologic characteristics except for primary tumor site. The median OS for patients with blood groups A, B, AB, and O were 87.0, 80.0, 90.0, and 72.5 months, respectively. The 3-, 5-, and 10-year OS rates were 82.4%, 76.0%, and 67.5% for patients with blood group A; 77.4%, 69.8%, and 58.4% for patients with blood group B; 82.2%, 73.1%, and 65.6% for patients with blood group AB; and 71.7%, 66.4%, and 55.5% for patients with blood group O, respectively. Univariate and multivariate analyses showed that the ABO blood group had significant effects on prognosis in patients with laryngeal cancer.

Conclusions

The ABO blood group is associated with survival in patients with laryngeal cancer. Patients with blood group O had significantly shorter OS than patients with other ABO blood groups.

Prognostic value of ABO blood group in patients with early stage cervical cancer treated with radical hysterectomy with pelvic node dissection

This study aimed to evaluate the prognostic value of ABO blood groups in early-stage cervical cancer patients. The cohort included 413 patients diagnosed with stages IA2-IB1 cervical cancer who received a radical hysterectomy between 2002 and 2014. The 5-year recurrence-free survival (RFS) and overall survival (OS) were 93.13 and 96.81 % for blood group O, 87.68 and 88.22 % for blood group A, 81.66 and 89.40 % for blood group B, and 83.12 and 94.12 % for blood group AB groups, respectively. Patients were stratified for analysis as either blood group O or non-O. The 5-year RFS and OS were 93.13 and 96.81 % for blood group O and 83.66 and 89.76 % for blood group non-O, respectively. In multivariate analysis, age (P = 0.025), histology (P = 0.020), and deep stromal invasion (P = 0.006) were independent adverse prognostic factors for RFS, while the statistically significant independent prognostic factors for OS were age (P = 0.007) and parametrial involvement (P < 0.001). The Cox model did not show any significant effects of non-O blood group on survival outcome. However, a time-varying-effect Cox model revealed that the non-O blood group was associated with a worse RFS (hazard ratio (HR) 2.69, 95 % confidence interval (95%CI) 1.12-6.46, P = 0.017) and OS (HR 3.13, 95%CI 0.88-11.16, P = 0.053) during the first 5 years. These findings suggest that early-stage cervical cancer patients with a non-O blood group have poorer RFS than the O blood group, which is evidence during the first 5 years.

The prognostic value of ABO blood group in cancer patients

The antigens of the ABO system are expressed on red blood cell membranes as well as on the surface of several other normal and pathological cells and tissues. Following the first clinical observations more than 60 years ago, the role of ABO blood group in cancer biology has been intensely studied by several investigators, and it is now widely recognised that ABO antigens are associated with the risk of developing several types of tumours, namely pancreatic and gastric cancers. However, whether this association also affects the clinical outcome of cancer patients is less certain. In this narrative review, based on literature data, we discuss the role of ABO blood types as prognostic biomarkers in different types of cancers. The current knowledge of the underlying pathogenic mechanisms of the association is also analysed.

Clinical features of patients with esophageal and second primary cancers

BACKGROUND

The prevalence of esophageal cancer (EC) with second primary cancers (SPC) is increasing worldwide. This study was aimed to understand the clinical features of EC patients with SPC in the Taiwanese population.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

Clinical and laboratory data for 180 EC patients with or without SPC were collected between January 2009 and December 2013. Information on treatment approaches, location of SPCs and ABO blood type were also collected and stratified.

RESULTS

The most common SPC in EC patients was hypopharyngeal cancer, followed by laryngeal cancer and hepatocellular carcinoma in our study. Malignancies of colon, prostate and lung were also found. There was a significant higher portion of blood type A in the EC patients with SPC compared with those without (42.4% vs 19.5%, P=0.006).

CONCLUSIONS

The frequency and SPC site distribution and blood type A should be considered in clinical evaluation of EC patients with a high risk of developing SPC in the Taiwanese population.

Prognostic Impact of ABO Blood Group on the Survival in Patients with Ovarian Cancer

Purpose: The impact of ABO blood group on the survival of patients with ovarian cancer remains uncertain. The aim of this study was to evaluate the prognostic value of the ABO blood group in ovarian cancer patients.

Methods: 256 ovarian cancer patients who received a cytoreductive surgery were retrospectively reviewed. The prognostic impact of the ABO blood group with respect to overall survival (OS) was analyzed.

Results: The median follow-up time was 57 months and the 5-year OS was 70.1%. The 5-year OS were 55.0%, 83.3%, 82.5%, and 70.0% in patients with A, B, AB, and O blood type, respectively (p = 0.003). Patients with blood type A had a poorer 5-year OS than patients with blood type non-A (55.0% vs. 75.0%, p = 0.001), especially in patients with age > 50 years (40.0% vs. 62.5%, p = 0.004). Univariate Cox analyses showed that blood type A was significantly associated with OS than those with non-A types (hazard ratio (HR) 2.210, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.373-3.557, p = 0.001). Blood type A remained an independent prognostic factor for OS than those with non-A blood types in multivariate analyses (HR 2.235, 95% CI 1.360-3.674, p = 0.002).

Conclusion: ABO blood group is associated with survival in patients with ovarian cancer, patients with blood type A had a significantly worse OS than patients with non-A blood types, especially in patients with age > 50 years.

Effect of blood type on survival of Chinese patients with esophageal squamous cell carcinoma

Background

The aim of this study was to evaluate the prognostic value of ABO blood group in Chinese patients with esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) after esophagectomy.

Methods

This study was a retrospective review of the records of 548 patients with ESCC who received cytoreductive surgery between October 2002 and March 2007. The prognostic impact of ABO blood group on overall survival (OS) was analyzed.

Results

The median follow-up time was 37 months, and the 5-year OS was 43.3%. The overall 5-year OS was 41.2%, 49.7%, 44.0%, and 29.8% for the A, B, O, and AB groups, respectively (P=0.038). Among patients with negative lymph nodes (LNs), the 5-year OS was 59.0%, 68.2%, 57.9%, and 28.6% for the A, B, O, and AB groups, respectively (P<0.001), but blood type had no value in predicting the OS of patients with positive LNs (P=0.524). In multivariate Cox regression analysis of all patients, ABO blood group was not an independent prognostic factor of OS. However, in patients with negative LNs, blood type was an independent prognostic factor of OS, and the higher risk of death for patients of type AB versus non-AB significant in multivariate analyses (hazard ratio [HR], 2.576; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.349–4.919; P=0.004).

Conclusion

ABO blood group is associated with survival in Chinese patients with ESCC. Patients with blood type AB had a significantly worse OS than patients with non-AB type, especially in patients with negative LNs.