Effects of body mass index and serum albumin on overall survival in patients with cancer undergoing pancreaticoduodenectomy: a single-center retrospective cohort study

OBJECTIVES: We aimed to explore whether body mass index (BMI) and albumin were associated with overall survival (OS) in individuals who underwent pancreaticoduodenectomy (PD) for cancer. METHODS: Three-hundred twenty-nine consecutive patients who underwent PD for cancer were enrolled from January 2020 to December 2020. All clinicopathological information was extracted based on medical records. The survival follow-ups were regularly performed and ended on June 30, 2021. The Kaplan-Meier survival analysis and univariate and multivariate Cox proportional-hazards models were used to assess the association of BMI and albumin with OS. RESULTS: Of the 329 patients, 186 (56.5%) were male, and median age at admission was 65.0 (56.0–71.0) years. There were 258 patients (78.4%) with BMI < 25.0 kg/m(2) and 89 patients (27.05%) with albumin < 35.0 g/L respectively. In overall cohort, BMI < 25.0 kg/m(2) was associated with OS (adjusted HR = 3.516, 95% CI = 1.076–11.492, P = 0.037). In contrast, albumin < 35.0 g/L did not affect OS. Subgroup analysis showed, in patients with pancreas lesion, BMI < 25.0 kg/m(2) had a higher risk for OS compared to BMI ≥ 25.0 kg/m(2) (adjusted HR = 3.209, 95% CI = 0.985–10.451, P = 0.048), while albumin < 35.0 g/L was not linked to OS. In patients with lesion in ampulla of Vater, duodenum, or common bile duct, there was no significant association of BMI and albumin with OS. CONCLUSIONS: BMI, rather than serum albumin, was associated with OS in patients who underwent PD for cancer. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s12957-022-02678-z.