Relationship of the Hemoglobin/Red Cell Distribution Width Ratio and Inflammatory Biomarkers with Prognosis in Nasopharyngeal Cancer
Abdullah Evren Yetisir1, Mahmut Buyuksimsek1, Ali Ogul1, Timucin Cil1, Berna Bozkurt Duman11Department of Medical Oncology, Adana City Training and Research Hospital, Adana, Türkiye
Objectives: To investigate the ability of the neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR), platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio (PLR), and hemoglobin/red cell distribution width (Hg/RDW) ratio to predict overall survival and progression-free survival in patients with locally advanced nasopharyngeal cancer who received definitive chemoradiotherapy. Methods: In this retrospective study, the pre-chemoradiotherapy hemogram values and progression and mortality status of 90 patients with nasopharyngeal cancer who received locally advanced definitive chemoradiotherapy were recorded. Results: The mean overall survival of the patients was 87.1±9.6 months, and their mean progression-free survival was 21.2±2.6 months. The best diagnostic performance for the prediction of mortality and progression belonged to Hg/ RDW (area under the curve (AUC): 93.5%, sensitivity: 97.5%, and specificity: 83.67%) and PLR (AUC: 92.1%, sensitivity: 91.3%, and specificity: 88.64%), respectively. When the patients were evaluated in two groups according to the low and high levels of parameters based on their cut-off values determined for the prediction of mortality, the mean survival times were found to be low in those with high NLR and PLR values, as well as in those with low Hg/RDW values. Conclusion: Nasopharyngeal cancer is mostly diagnosed at locally advanced stage and has a poor prognosis. It is important to predict prognosis in these patients. In this study, among the biomarkers associated with systemic inflammation, Hg/RDW had the best diagnostic test performance in predicting mortality and PLR progression. Inflammatory biomarkers and the Hg/RDW ratio reflecting hypoxia may be useful in prognostic patient follow-up. Keywords: Hemoglobin/red cell distribution width ratio, nasopharyngeal cancer, neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio, platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio
Cite This Article
Yetisir A, Buyuksimsek M, Ogul A, Cil T, Duman B. Relationship of the Hemoglobin/Red Cell Distribution Width Ratio and Inflammatory Biomarkers with Prognosis in Nasopharyngeal Cancer. EJMI. 2023; 7(3): 290-295
Corresponding Author: Abdullah Evren Yetisir