Abstract
Background/Aim: We investigated the prognostic nutritional index (PNI), comprised of lymphocytes and albumin, as a potential prognosticator of metastatic urothelial carcinoma (mUC) patients receiving pembrolizumab. Patients and Methods: Sixty-five patients were retrospectively enrolled and classified as low (<40) and high (≥40) based on pretreatment PNI. Progression-free survival (PFS), overall survival (OS) and response rates were evaluated. Results: In the low PNI group, significantly shorter PFS and OS were observed. PNI was shown to be an independent predictor of PFS and OS in the multivariate analysis. C-index for both PFS and OS improved with the addition of PNI to the model described in the KEYNOTE-045 study. Significantly more patients experienced initial disease progression in the low PNI group. Conclusion: PNI is a useful predictor of prognosis and disease progression in mUC patients receiving pembrolizumab.
- Received February 3, 2021.
- Revision received February 16, 2021.
- Accepted February 17, 2021.
- Copyright © 2021 International Institute of Anticancer Research (Dr. George J. Delinasios), All rights reserved.
This article requires a subscription to view the full text. If you have a subscription you may use the login form below to view the article. Access to this article can also be purchased.