Novel application of the traditional lipid ratios as strong risk predictors of nonsmall-cell lung cancer risk in a Chinese population

Dyslipidemia has been associated with cancer risk, yet the relationship between lipid ratios and nonsmall-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) is still unclear. This study aimed to explore the value of lipid ratios, including total cholesterol/high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (TC/HDL-C) and triglyceride/HDL-C (TG/HDL-C) as predictors of NSCLC in a Chinese population. Adult patients with histologically confirmed NSCLC, without a previous history of cancer, concomitant disease associated with lipid metabolism disorders, or usage of lipid-lowering drugs, were enrolled from a single center. Controls without NSCLC, matched for age and sex, were enrolled from the same Center. Lipid profile including TC, TG, HDL-C were measured in all participants. TC/HDL-C and TG/HDL-C were calculated based on the levels of TC, TG, HDL-C. Seven hundred eighty-two NSCLC cases and 599 controls were enrolled. NSCLC patients had significantly higher TG/HDL-C and TC/HDL-C levels than those in the control. After controlling for confounding factors, TG/HDL-C (OR = 4.489, 95% CI: 2.463–6.035, P < .001) and TC/HDL-C (OR = 2.396, 95% CI: 2.086–2.752, P = .001) were independently associated with NSCLC risk. The incidence of NSCLC was increased with rising tertiles of TG/HDL-C and TC/HDL-C. Moreover, patients with TNM II-IV stage NSCLC had higher TG/HDL-C and TC/HDL-C than those in TNM I and Tis stage. TG/HDL-C and TC/HDL-C are positively correlated with NSCLC risk and TG/HDL-C is more predictive than TC/HDL-C in predicting the risk of NSCLC. The highest AUC was that of TG/HDL (0.898), at a cutoff point of 0.62, with 83.6% sensitivity and 83.5% specificity.