Commentary: Prognostic value in the pattern of nodal metastasis in esophageal cancer: Do not forget the bigger picture when trying to paint better picture?

Abstract Background In recent years, the role of pre-treatment C-reactive protein/albumin ratio (CAR) in prognosis of esophageal cancer (EC) has been investigated by several studies. This meta-analysis aimed to provide a more accurate and objective assessment of the prognostic value of pre-treatment CAR in EC. Methods Studies assessing the role of pre-treatment CAR in prognosis of EC were searched from PubMed, Embase and the Cochrane Library (last update by April 16, 2019). The hazard ratios (HRs) of CAR and the corresponding 95% CIs for overall survival (OS) or cancer-specific survival (CSS) in EC were extracted for pooled analysis. Results A total of eight observational studies including 2255 patients were collected. The pooled analysis showed that high CAR was related to worse OS in EC (pooled HR = 1.81; 95% CI = 1.40–2.35; P < 0.001). Subgroup analyses showed that the negative correlation between the CAR and OS was consistently demonstrated in subgroups stratified by country, pathological type, and cut-off value (P < 0.05). However, there was no relation between CAR and OS in subgroup of patients receiving neoadjuvant chemotherapy at a proportion of 100% (HR = 1.15, 95% CI = 0.56–2.69; P = 0.715). In addition, high CAR was also related to worse CSS in EC (pooled HR = 2.61; 95% CI = 1.67–4.06; P < 0.001). Conclusions High pre-treatment CAR was an adverse prognostic factor for EC patients. More large-sample clinical trials are still needed to verify the prognostic value of pre-treatment CAR in EC.

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Prognostic value of cervical nodal tumor volume in nasopharyngeal carcinoma: Analysis of 1230 patients with positive cervical nodal metastasis

PLoS ONE ◽

10.1371/journal.pone.0176995 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 12 (5) ◽

pp. e0176995 ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

Fo-Ping Chen ◽

Guan-Qun Zhou ◽

Zhen-Yu Qi ◽

Li Lin ◽

Jiang Hu ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma ◽

Prognostic Value ◽

Tumor Volume ◽

Nodal Metastasis

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RA07.05: DIAGNOSTIC VALUE OF INTRAOPERATIVE ULTRASONOGRAPHY IN ASSESSING THORACIC RECURRENT LARYNGEAL NERVE LYMPH NODES IN PATIENTS WITH ESOPHAGEAL CANCER

Diseases of the Esophagus ◽

10.1093/dote/doy089.ra07.05 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 31 (Supplement_1) ◽

pp. 35-35

Author(s):

Hong Yang

Keyword(s):

Esophageal Cancer ◽

Recurrent Laryngeal Nerve ◽

Predictive Value ◽

Conflicts Of Interest ◽

Nodal Metastasis ◽

Laryngeal Nerve ◽

Intraoperative Ultrasonography ◽

Nodal Metastases ◽

Thoracic Esophageal Cancer ◽

Significant Difference

Abstract Background To evaluate the ability of intraoperative ultrasonography (IU) to detect recurrent laryngeal nerve (RLN) nodal metastases in esophageal cancer patients. Methods Sixty patients with esophageal cancer underwent IU, computed tomography (CT), and endoscopic ultrasonography (EUS) to assess for RLN nodal metastasis. Sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value (PPV), and negative predictive value (NPV) were compared. Results The sensitivities of IU, CT, and EUS in diagnosing right RLN nodal metastases were 71.4%, 14.3%, and 30.0%, respectively, and a significant difference among these three examinations was observed (c2 = 10.077, P = .006). The specificities of IU, CT, and EUS for diagnosing right RLN nodal metastasis were 67.4%, 97.8%, and 95.0%, respectively, and a significant difference was observed (c2 = 21.725, P < .001). No significant differences in either PPV or NPV were observed when diagnosing right RLN nodal metastases. For diagnosis of left RLN lymph nodal metastases, the sensitivities of IU, CT, and EUS were 91.7%, 16.7%, and 40.0% respectively. There was a significant difference among these diagnostic sensitivities (c2 = 14.067, P = .001). The specificities of IU, CT, and EUS for diagnosis of left RLN nodal metastases were 79.2%, 100%, and 82.5%, respectively and a significant difference was observed (c2 = 10.819, P = .004). No significant differences were observed in PPV or NPV for these examinations when diagnosing left RLN nodal metastases. Conclusion Intraoperative ultrasonography showed superior sensitivity compared with preoperative CT or EUS in detecting RLN lymph node metastasis in patients with thoracic esophageal cancer. Disclosure All authors have declared no conflicts of interest.

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