Background and Objectives: The prevalence of cachexia has increased across all of the cancer types and accounts for up to 20% of cancer-related deaths. This paper is a systematic review of nutritional interventions aiming to improve cachexia outcomes in cancer, focusing on weight gain. Materials and Methods: A search in Medline and Elsevier databases for articles up until the 23 January 2022, was conducted. Results: Out of 5732 screened records, 26 publications were included in the final analysis. Four randomized clinical trials showed a significant body weight (BW) increase in patients treated with eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA), β-hydroxy-beta-methyl butyrate (β-HMB), arginine, and glutamine or marine phospholipids (MPL). An upward BW trend was observed in patients treated with L-carnitine, an Ethanwell/Ethanzyme (EE) regimen enriched with ω-3 fatty acids, micronutrients, probiotics, fish oil, a leucine-rich supplement, or total parental nutrition (TPN) with a high dose of a branched-chain amino acid (BCAA). Conclusions: Although clinical trials relating to large numbers of nutritional supplements present promising data, many trials provided negative results. Further studies investigating the underlying mechanisms of action of these nutritional supplements in cancer cachexia are needed. Early screening for cancer cachexia risk and nutritional intervention in cancer patients before aggravating weight loss may stabilize their weight, preventing cachexia syndrome. According to the GRADE methodology, no positive recommendation for these nutritional supplements may be expressed.

Background and objectives: This study aimed to evaluate the impact of body mass index on PCa outcomes in our institution and also to find if there are statistically significant differences between the variables. Materials and Methods: A retrospective chart review was performed to extract information about all male patients with prostate cancer between 1 February 2015, and 25 October 2022, and with information about age, weight, height, follow-up, and PSA. We identified a group of 728 patients, of which a total of 219 patients resulted after the inclusion and exclusion criteria were applied. The primary endpoint was progression-free survival, which was defined as the length of time that the patient lives with the disease, but no relapses occur, and this group included 105 patients. In this case, 114 patients had a biological, local or metastatic relapse and were included in the progression group. Results: Our study suggests that prostate cancer incidence rises with age (72 ± 7.81 years) in men with a normal BMI, but the diagnostic age tends to drop in those with higher BMIs, i.e., overweight, and obese in the age range of 69.47 ± 6.31 years, respectively, 69.1 ± 7.51 years. A statistically significant difference was observed in the progression group of de novo metastases versus the absent metastases group at diagnostic (p = 0.04). The progression group with metastases present (n = 70) at diagnostic had a shorter time to progression, compared to the absent metastases group (n = 44), 18.04 ± 11.37 months, respectively, 23.95 ± 16.39 months. Also, PSA levels tend to diminish with increasing BMI classification, but no statistically significant difference was observed. Conclusions: The median diagnostic age decreases with increasing BMI category. Overweight and obese patients are more likely to have an advanced or metastatic prostate cancer at diagnosis. The progression group with metastatic disease at diagnostic had a shorter time to progression, compared to the absent metastases group. Regarding prostate serum antigen, the levels tend to become lower in the higher BMI groups, possibly leading to a late diagnosis.

Background and objectives: The global burden of non-communicable diseases like obesity and cancer, particularly colorectal cancer (CRC), is increasing. The present study aimed to investigate the association between CRC location (proximal vs. distal) and patient demographic factors including age, sex, and BMI, as well as cancer stage at diagnosis. Materials and Methods: In this cross-sectional study, data from 830 patients diagnosed with CRC were analyzed. The variables included age, sex, weight, height, BMI, cancer location, and cancer stage at diagnosis. Patients were stratified into three age groups and three BMI categories, and we analyzed the association between cancer location and these variables using Chi-squared tests and multivariate logistic regression. Results: The rectum and ascending colon were the most common locations of malignant neoplasms. No statistically significant differences in cancer location across age groups were observed. Significant differences were found in the BMI across age groups, particularly in the normal weight and overweight categories. Normal weight and obese patients had a higher proportion of Stage 3 and Stage 4 cancers. Obesity emerged as a significant predictor for rectal cancer in a multivariate logistic regression analysis, with an odds ratio of 1.56. However, no significant associations were found between cancer location and other factors like age, gender, or cancer stage. Conclusions: Our study revealed that normal weight and obese patients had a higher proportion of Stage 3 and Stage 4 cancers, with obesity emerging as a significant predictor for rectal cancer. It is important to note that while obesity was found to be a significant predictor for rectal cancer, the development and location of colorectal cancer is likely influenced by various factors beyond those studied here. Therefore, further research is needed to investigate the roles of other potential risk factors, like loss of SIRT6 and adipose tissue homeostasis. Additionally, inflammation associated with microbiota in the colorectal mucosa, systemic gene expression, and visceral obesity may also play important roles in the development and progression of colorectal cancer. Understanding these intricate relationships is crucial for better screening, disease prognosis, and management strategies.

Background: Despite recent advances in the management of metastatic renal cell carcinoma (mRCC), real-world outcomes remain heterogeneous, and early treatment failure is common. Predictive biomarkers for time to treatment failure (TTF) outside clinical trials are poorly characterized. Objective: To identify clinical and laboratory predictors associated with early treatment failure in a real-world cohort of mRCC patients treated with immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs), tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs), or combination regimens. Methods: We conducted a retrospective, single-center analysis of patients with metastatic non-urothelial RCC treated between 2018 and 2023. Cox proportional hazards regression was used to evaluate the association between baseline biological parameters and TTF for each treatment regimen. Results: Among 137 patients receiving first-line therapy, 50 received Ipilimumab + Nivolumab, 49 Sunitinib, and 17 Avelumab + Axitinib. For Ipilimumab + Nivolumab, elevated AST was significantly associated with shorter TTF. For Avelumab + Axitinib, shorter TTF was associated with lymph node metastases, low lymphocyte count, low creatinine, low BMI, and low hemoglobin. For Cabozantinib in subsequent lines, a higher platelet count, ALT, and presence of liver metastases were associated with shorter TTF. No statistically significant predictors were found for Nivolumab used in the second-line setting. Conclusions: Routine, accessible biomarkers such as AST, hemoglobin, lymphocyte count, and creatinine may serve as predictors of treatment failure in specific therapeutic contexts. These findings support risk-adapted strategies and individualized monitoring in real-world clinical practice, though further validation in larger cohorts is warranted.

Background/Objectives: Immune checkpoint inhibitors targeting the PD-1/PD-L1 axis have become a standard in the treatment of all stages of non-small lung cancer. Beyond tumor-intrinsic biomarkers like PD-L1 expression, evidence points to the role of patient-related factors, such as body mass index, sarcopenia, and cachexia. These body composition parameters may reflect metabolic reserve or even immune competence and could help stratify outcomes in patients treated with PD-1 and PD-L1. This systematic review aims to evaluate the impact of body composition—specifically BMI, pretreatment weight loss, sarcopenia, and cachexia—on clinical outcomes such as progression-free and overall survival in NSCLC patients treated with immune checkpoint inhibitors. Methods: A systematic literature search was conducted across multiple databases including PubMed, Google Scholar, and Science Direct. We included full-text original research articles (1 January 2020–1 May 2025) reporting clinical outcomes of NSCLC patients treated with PD-1 or PD-L1 inhibitors, in relation to body composition factors (BMI, pretreatment weight loss, sarcopenia, cachexia). Eligible studies involved adults (>18 years) and included observational cohorts or controlled trials; animal or in vitro studies were excluded. Data extraction and risk of bias assessments were performed independently by two reviewers, with discrepancies being resolved through a third one. Results: From 12,358 records identified, 21 studies met the inclusion criteria. Most were retrospective cohorts assessing the impact of pre-treatment weight loss, cachexia, and sarcopenia on ICI outcomes in NSCLC. These factors consistently predicted poorer survival and response, while BMI alone showed limited prognostic value. Considerable heterogeneity in body composition definitions and outcome reporting was observed. Conclusions: Body composition—particularly weight loss, cachexia, and sarcopenia—significantly impacts survival and response in NSCLC patients treated with ICIs. These factors reflect immune–metabolic dysfunction that may impair treatment efficacy. BMI alone is insufficient; routine assessment of muscle mass and cachexia could improve risk stratification.

Background and Objectives: In the last decades there has been an increasing body of research identifying the positive correlation between diabetes mellitus (DM) and solid malignancies, moreover, having shown DM as an independent risk factor for colorectal cancer (CRC). The aim of the present study was to assess the impact of DM on metastatic CRC (mCRC), and to identify possible predictive factors in the successful treatment of mCRC. Materials and Methods: 468 patients with mCRC were included in this retrospective, observational study. A total of 8669 oncological treatment cycles related to 988 distinct chemotherapy lines were analyzed. Data regarding lines of treatment and blood panel values were obtained from the Oncohelp Hospital database. Results: The presence of DM in male patients >70 years was a negative predictor (RR = 1.66 and a p = 0.05). DM seemed to have a detrimental effect in patients whose treatment included bevacizumab (median time to treatment failure -TTF- 94 days for DM+ cases compared to 114 days for DM-patients, p = 0.07). Analysis of treatments including bevacizumab based on DM status revealed lower values of mean TTF in DM+ female patients versus DM-(81.08 days versus 193.09 days, p < 0.001). It was also observed that DM+ patients had a higher mean TTF when undergoing anti-EGFR (epidermal growth factor) therapy (median TTF 143 days for DM+ patients versus 97.5 days for those without DM, p = 0.06). Conclusions: The favorable predictive factors identified were the inclusion of antiangiogenic agents, a higher hemoglobin value, a higher lymphocyte count, the inclusion of anti-EGFR treatment for DM+ patients, a higher creatinine, and a higher lymphocyte count in treatment lines that included anti-EGFR treatment. Unfavorable predictive factors were represented by the presence of DM in female patients undergoing antiangiogenic treatment, neutropenia in male patients, the association of oxaliplatin and antiangiogenic agents, and a higher monocyte count in the aforementioned treatment lines.