Prevalence and effect on survival of pre-treatment sarcopenia in patients with hematological malignancies: a meta-analysis

BACKGROUND & AIMS: Evidence regarding the prevalence of pre-treatment sarcopenia and its impact on survival in patients with hematological malignancies (HM) varies across studies. We conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis to summarize this discrepancy. METHODS: PubMed, Embase and Cochrane library were systematically searched for relevant studies. Outcomes assessed were: prevalence of pre-treatment sarcopenia, overall survival (OS), progression-free survival (PFS) and complete response (CR). Weighted mean proportion, odds ratios (ORs) and hazard ratios (HRs) were estimated using a fixed-effects and a random-effects model. RESULTS: A total of 27 retrospective cohort studies involving 4,991 patients were included in this study. The prevalence of pre-treatment sarcopenia was 37.0% (95% CI: 32.0%-42.0%) in HM patients <60 years and 51.0% (95% CI: 45.0%-57.0%) in≥60 years. Patients with leukemia had the lowest prevalence, compared with those with other HM (38.0%; 95% CI: 33.0%-43.0%; P = 0.010). The presence of sarcopenia was independently associated with poor OS (HR = 1.57, 95% CI = 1.41-1.75) and PFS (HR = 1.50, 95% CI = 1.22-1.83) throughout treatment period, which may be partially attributed to decreased CR (OR = 0.54, 95% CI = 0.41-0.72), particularly for BMI ≥ 25 (P = 0.020) and males (P = 0.020). CONCLUSION: Sarcopenia is highly prevalent in patients with HM and an adverse prognostic factor for both survival and treatment efficacy. HM and sarcopenia can aggravate each other. We suggest that in future clinical work, incorporating sarcopenia into risk scores will contribute to guide patient stratification and therapeutic strategy, particularly for the elderly. SYSTEMATIC REVIEW REGISTRATION: https://www.crd.york.ac.uk/prospero/, identifier (CRD42023392550).