e15560 Background: Preoperative NLR was well known as highly repeatable, cost-effective and widely available long-term postoperative prognostic marker of gastric cancer patients. However, the utility of preoperative NLR to predict short-term outcomes in gastric cancer patients remains unclear. In this study, we addressed whether the preoperative NLR is a predictive value of short-term outcome in gastric cancer patients. Methods: We retrospectively evaluated 154 consecutive gastric cancer patients. Mean NLR was calculated, and 3.5 was set as cut-off value. The patient characteristics and perioperative outcomes were respectively compared. In addition, median survival times (MSTs) were also compared. In terms of stage II/III (UICC 7th) gastric cancer patients, median disease-free survival times (MDFSTs) were compared between the two groups. Results: The patients were then divided into two groups: low-NLR group (n = 110) and high-NLR group (n = 44). Among low-NLR group and high-NLR group, significant differences were respectively observed in preoperative symptoms [56 (51%) vs. 31 (70%); p = 0.027] and perioperative outcomes including postoperative complications [3 (2.7%) vs. 5 (11.3%); p = 0.015], intraoperative blood loss (158 ± 168 g vs. 232 ± 433 g; p = 0.022), and intraoperative blood transfusion [0 vs. 3 (6.8%); p = 0.042]. MSTs and MDFSTs were significantly differed (812 vs. 594 days; p = 0.04, 848 vs. 475 days; p = 0.03, respectively). Conclusions: The present study indicated that preoperative NLR influenced not only long-term outcomes but also perioperative outcomes in gastric cancer patients. Preoperative NLR is also a useful predictive value of short-term outcomes in gastric cancer patients.
Preoperative skeletal muscle index vs the controlling nutritional status score: Which is a better objective predictor of long-term survival for gastric cancer patients after radical gastrectomy?
