Prognostic value of controlling nutritional status on clinical and survival outcomes in cancer patients treated with immunotherapy

Cancer is a leading cause of death globally. Immunotherapy has shown promise in treating various types of cancer, but its effectiveness varies among patients. The Controlling Nutritional Status (CONUT) score has been linked to the prognosis of different cancers. However, its predictive value for immunotherapy outcomes is not well understood. Our research represents the pioneering meta-study to examine the prognostic value of the CONUT score on cancer patients treated with an immune checkpoint inhibitor (ICI). A comprehensive literature search was conducted using various databases including PubMed, the Cochrane Library, EMBASE, and Google Scholar. The study was conducted until July 28, 2023. This analysis encompassed a comprehensive evaluation of various clinical outcomes, namely overall survival (OS), progression-free survival (PFS), objective response rate (ORR), and disease control rate (DCR). 663 patients from 8 studies were included in this study. It showed that cancer patients with high CONUT score had poorer OS (HR: 1.94, 95% CI, 1.52–2.47, p < 0.001) and PFS (HR: 2.22, 95% CI, 1.48–3.31, p < 0.001), as well as worse ORR (OR: 0.46, 95% CI, 0.25–0.85, p = 0.013) and DCR (HR: 0.29, 95% CI, 0.14–0.59, p = 0.001). The CONUT score can predict the prognosis of tumor patients treated with ICIs.