Published online Jan 21, 2017. doi: 10.3748/wjg.v23.i3.505
Peer-review started: October 26, 2016
First decision: December 1, 2016
Revised: December 5, 2016
Accepted: December 21, 2016
Article in press: December 21, 2016
Published online: January 21, 2017
To evaluate the prognostic value of the neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) and platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio (PLR) in patients with colorectal cancer (CRC).
Between April 1996 and December 2010, medical records from a total of 1868 patients with CRC were retrospectively reviewed. The values of simple inflammatory markers including NLR and PLR in predicting the long-term outcomes of these patients were evaluated using Kaplan-Meier curves and Cox regression models.
The median follow-up duration was 46 mo (interquartile range, 22-73). The estimation of NLR and PLR was based on the time of diagnosis. In multivariate Cox regression analysis, high NLR (≥ 3.0) and high PLR (≥ 160) were independent risk factors predicting poor long-term outcomes in patients with stage III and IV CRC. However, high NLR and high PLR were not prognostic factors in patients with stage I and II CRC.
In this study, we identified that high NLR (≥ 3.0) and high PLR (≥ 160) are useful prognostic factors to predict long-term outcomes in patients with stage III and IV CRC.
Core tip: Recently, neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) and platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio (PLR) have been suggested as important inflammatory markers and potential predictors of long-term outcomes in patients with colorectal cancer (CRC). However, the direct impact of NLR and PLR on long-term outcomes in patients with CRC remains inconclusive. In this study, we identified that high NLR and high PLR are useful independent prognostic factors to predict poor long-term outcomes in patients with stage III and IV CRC. And we propose that initial assessment of NLR and PLR in newly diagnosed stage III and IV CRC patients is important for predicting long-term outcomes.