The immune system plays a fundamental role in the response to neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NAC) of locally advanced breast cancer (LABC) patients. Patients with pathological complete response (pCR) after NAC have a higher survival rate. Neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR), platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio (PLR), and lymphocyte-to-monocyte ratio (LMR) are peripheral blood indicators of inflammatory response. This investigates the correlation between NLR, PLR, LMR, and other clinicopathological features of breast cancer patients before receiving NAC and pCR. Data of LABC patients who underwent NAC between 2009 and 2018 were retrospectively reviewed. Each patient's peripheral complete blood count was recorded before starting NAC. The cut-off values for neutrophils, lymphocytes, monocytes, and platelets in the peripheral blood and NLR, PLR, and LMR were determined by receiver operating characteristic curve analyses. The records of 131 patients were analyzed and divided into two groups, pCR (+ve) and pCR (−ve), and their clinicopathological features and laboratory findings were compared. pCR was achieved in 23.6% of patients. The cut-off values of neutrophils, lymphocytes, monocytes, and platelets at the time of diagnosis and NLR, PLR, and LMR were, respectively, 4150 μL, 2000 μL, 635 μL, 271 × 10³ μL, 1.95, 119, and 3.35. The pCR rate was higher in patients with low neutrophil count, low NLR, and high lymphocyte count (P = .002, <.001, and .040, respectively). As per the findings of multivariate logistic regression analysis, the independent predictive factors of pCR were clinical tumor size T1 and T2, grade 3, ER negativity, and low NLR (P = .015, .001, .020, .022, and .001, respectively). While NLR was found to be an independent predictive factor of pCR in LABC patients receiving NAC, a similar result was not observed for PLR and LMR. NLR can be a useful biomarker for predicting the response of patients receiving NAC.

Aim: To evaluate the immunogenicity and safety of the CoronaVac vaccine in patients with cancer receiving active systemic therapy. Methods: This multicenter, prospective, observational study was co... Tweetable abstract Immunogenicity developed with CoronaVac in 25 (59.5%) of 42 patients who received at least one cytotoxic drug and in all patients (n = 5) who received monoclonal antibody or immu...

Objective: To investigate the prognostic value of clinical and inflammatory markers predicting response to nivolumab in patients with metastatic non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Materials and Methods: Clinical, demographic and laboratory data of stage 4 NSCLC patients who were treated between February 2021 and November 2024 were analyzed. Before nivolumab treatment, inflammatory markers such as neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR), platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio (PLR), lymphocyte-to-monocyte ratio (LMR), systemic immune-inflammation index (SII), systemic inflammation response index (SIRI), prognostic nutritional index (PNI), hemoglobin-albumin-lymphocyte-platelet score (HALP), neutrophil-to-eosinophil ratio (NER) and C-reactive protein-to-albumin ratio (CAR) were calculated. Factors affecting overall survival (OS) were determined by Cox regression analysis, and ROC curve analysis was used to calculate the ideal cut-off. Results: The study included 229 NSCLC patients and the median age of the patients was 63 years. The majority were male (84.3%) and had right lung localization (56.8%). Median overall survival was calculated as 21.2 months (95% CI: 17.4– 25.0). In univariate cox-regression analysis, the presence of brain metastases (HR: 2.08; p=0.004), liver metastases (HR: 1.85; p=0.014) and adrenal metastases (HR: 1.64; p=0.045) negatively affected the treatment response. Inflammatory markers such as high NLR (HR: 2.04; p< 0.001), high SII (HR: 1.96; p< 0.001), high CAR (HR: 1.84; p=0.001), high PLR (HR: 1.60; p=0.009) and high SIRI (HR: 1.51; p=0.021), low PNI (HR: 0.48; p< 0.001), low HALP (HR: 0.49; p< 0.001) and low LMR (HR: 0.65; p=0.016) were associated with poor prognosis. In multivariate analysis, the presence of brain metastasis (HR: 2.84; p< 0.001), adrenal metastasis (HR: 1.64; p=0.046) and low PNI (HR: 0.44; p< 0.001) together predicted poor prognosis and formed a statistical model on treatment response. Conclusion: In patients with metastatic NSCLC, nivolumab treatment response is predicted by inflammatory markers and the presence of brain and adrenal metastases. It was concluded that low PNI among inflammatory markers is a strong prognostic indicator in this patient group.

Background: Sarcopenia, which is characterized by the progressive loss of skeletal muscle mass, strength, and functionality, adversely affects cancer outcomes. This study aims to evaluate the development and progression of sarcopenia in patients with gastrointestinal cancer undergoing chemotherapy and its impact on comprehensive geriatric assessment outcomes in older participants. Methods: This cross-sectional study included 351 gastrointestinal cancer patients from October 2018 to December 2019. Pre- and post-chemotherapy measurements were taken for 243 participants. Sarcopenia was assessed using EWGSOP-2 criteria, including muscle mass, strength, and performance evaluations. A comprehensive geriatric assessment was conducted for patients aged 65 years and older. Results: The median age of participants was 57.84 years, with 31.7% being female and 29.2% being aged 65 years or older. A significant increase in the prevalence of sarcopenia post-chemotherapy was observed. The factors significantly associated with sarcopenia included low hand grip strength (−0.264; p < 0.001) and slow gait speed (0.222; p = 0.007). The muscle mass and albumin levels of older patients declined significantly post-treatment. Conclusions: This study highlights a strong association between chemotherapy and sarcopenia in gastrointestinal cancer patients, emphasizing the need for early detection and tailored interventions. Comprehensive geriatric assessments can provide critical insights that improve patient outcomes during chemotherapy.

Introduction Colonic wall thickening (CWT) is frequently observed incidentally via abdominal computerized tomography (aCT). Although the general approach to evaluating incidental CWT is a colonoscopic examination, there is a lack of definitive recommendation guidelines. Thus, we aimed to determine neoplasia rates and identify the factors predictive of neoplasia via colonoscopic examinations of patients with CWT incidentally diagnosed via aCT. Methods We retrospectively reviewed 5,300 colonoscopy reports. A total of 122 patients who had CWT incidentally observed via aCT were included in the study. CWT was graded as mild (3-5 mm), moderate (6-12 mm), or severe (>= 12 mm). A logistic regression model was used to determine the predictive factors for neoplasia. Results The mean age of the patients was 60 years, and abnormal findings were noted in 52% of the colonoscopies. Neoplastic lesions were detected in 24 patients (19.6%), while colon adenocarcinoma was detected in 8 patients (6.5%). Multivariate analysis showed that moderate-severe, focal, and asymmetric CWT were independent factors for predicting neoplasia (p=0.049, p=0.033, and p=0.018, respectively). Conclusion Pathological findings can be noted via colonoscopic examination in cases of incidental CWT; therefore, patients with moderate-severe, focal, or asymmetric CWT require colonoscopic examination for the purpose of detecting neoplasia.