Progress in Applicability of Scoring Systems Based on Nutritional and Inflammatory Parameters for Ovarian Cancer

Pre-Operative Malnutrition in Patients with Ovarian Cancer: What Are the Clinical Implications? Results of a Prospective Study

BACKGROUND

Malnutrition was associated with worse survival outcomes, impaired quality of life, and deteriorated performance status across various cancer types. We aimed to identify risk factors for malnutrition in patients with epithelial ovarian cancer (EOC) and impact on survival.

METHODS

In our prospective observational monocentric study, we included the patients with primary and recurrent EOC, tubal or peritoneal cancer conducted. We assessed serum laboratory parameters, body mass index, nutritional risk index, nutritional risk screening score (NRS-2002), and bio-electrical impedance analysis.

RESULTS

We recruited a total of 152 patients. Patients > 65 years-old, with ascites of >500 mL, or with platinum-resistant EOC showed statistically significant increased risk of malnutrition when evaluated using NRS-2002 (p-values= 0.014, 0.001, and 0.007, respectively). NRS-2002 < 3 was an independent predictive factor for complete tumor resectability (p = 0.009). The patients with NRS-2002 ≥ 3 had a median overall survival (OS) of seven months (95% CI = 0-24 months), as compared to the patients with NRS-2002 < 3, where median OS was forty-six months (p = 0.001). A phase angle (PhAα) ≤ 4.5 was the strongest predictor of OS.

CONCLUSIONS

In our study, we found malnutrition to be an independent predictor of incomplete cytoreduction and independent prognostic factor for poor OS. Preoperative nutritional assessment is an effective tool in the identification of high-risk EOC groups characterized by poor clinical outcome.

Lymphocyte-to-monocyte ratio after primary surgery is an independent prognostic factor for patients with epithelial ovarian cancer: A propensity score matching analysis

Background

The aim of this study was to elucidate the prognostic value of preoperative lymphocyte-to-monocyte ratio (LMR) after primary surgery in epithelial ovarian cancer (EOC) patients using a propensity score matching (PSM) analysis.

Methods

We retrospectively reviewed consecutive EOC patients who underwent primary surgery between January 2008 and December 2019. Patients were divided into two groups according to the optimal cutoff value of preoperative LMR. PSM (1:1) was conducted to eliminate confounding factors. A Cox proportional hazards model and the Kaplan-Meier estimator were employed to investigate the potential prognostic factors.

Results

A total of 368 EOC patients were included in this study. The optimal cutoff value of LMR was identified as 4.65. Low preoperative LMR was significantly correlated with low albumin, high CA125 level, more blood loss, a high likelihood of ascites, advanced FIGO stage, and poor differentiation (all p < 0.05). After matching, Kaplan-Meier curves showed that the group with LMR < 4.65 experienced significantly shorter OS (p = 0.015). Multivariate Cox analysis revealed that low LMR (HR = 1.49, p = 0.041), advanced FIGO stage (HR = 5.25, p < 0.001), and undefined residual disease (HR = 3.77, p = 0.002) were independent factors in predicting poor OS. A forest plot revealed that LMR had better prognostic value in younger EOC patients, patients with BMI ≥ 25 kg/m² and albumin ≥ 35 g/L, CA125 ≥ 35 U/L, patients who had undergone optimal surgery, and those who had completed chemotherapy. Additionally, low-LMR patients who had undergone incomplete chemotherapy had a shorter median OS compared with those who completed chemotherapy treatment (48.5 vs. 105.9 months, p = 0.026).

Conclusions

LMR could be used as an independent prognostic factor for EOC patients after primary surgery; a noticeable negative effect of LMR was observed among EOC patients with age < 65, good preoperative nutritional status, and more aggressive tumor biology, and among those who underwent optimal surgery. Completing adjuvant chemotherapy is essential to improve survival outcomes among EOC patients with LMR < 4.65 after surgery.