Sarcopenia and Visceral Adiposity Are Not Independent Prognostic Markers for Extensive Disease of Small-Cell Lung Cancer: A Single-Centered Retrospective Cohort Study

BACKGROUND: Sarcopenia and visceral adiposity have been suggested to affect prognosis and treatment efficacy in various types of cancers. The aim of our study was to evaluate whether pretreatment sarcopenia and visceral adiposity are associated with prognosis in patients with extensive-disease small-cell lung cancer (ED-SCLC). METHODS: Between September 2007 and March 2018, 128 ED-SCLC patients received first-line and platinum-based chemotherapy at our hospital. Based on pretreatment body mass index (BMI), psoas muscle index (PMI), intramuscular adipose tissue content (IMAC) and visceral-to-subcutaneous fat ratio (VSR) at lumbar vertebra L3 level, we divided these patients into two groups, and then compared overall survival (OS) and progression-free survival (PFS). Adjusted by age, serum albumin, lactate dehydrogenase (LDH), clinical stage and performance status, we detected independent prognostic factors by multivariate Cox proportional hazard analyses. RESULTS: We did not find any significant differences in OS and PFS between two groups divided by BMI, PMI, IMAC and VSR. According to multivariate analyses, none of BMI, PMI, IMAC and VSR was an independent prognostic factor of OS and PFS. CONCLUSIONS: Neither pretreatment sarcopenia nor visceral adiposity is a prognostic marker of patients with ED-SCLC treated with standard regimen of platinum-based chemotherapy.