Modified glasgow prognostic score in patients with small-cell lung cancer

Systemic inflammatory response, which represents the presence of cachexia, is observed often in patients with lung cancer. To evaluate the prognostic significance of the presence of a systemic inflammatory response in small cell lung cancer (SCLC) patients, a retrospective study using modified Glasgow prognostic Score (mGPS) was performed. This score is composed of serum albumin and C-reactive protein levels. All the patients with SCLC who were diagnosed in Tsukuba University Hospital, Tsukuba Medical Center Hospital and Mito Medical Center between April 1999 and July 2016 were included in this study. During the study period, 332 patients with SCLC were consecutively admitted to these hospitals. Among them, 54 (16.9%) had mGPS=1, and 73 (22.9%) had mGPS=2. Male sex, advanced stage, poor performance status and no chemotherapy were unfavorable prognostic factors in uni- and multivariate-analysis. In addition, the presence of a systemic inflammatory response was confirmed as an unfavorable prognostic factor. In patients with SCLC, an existing systemic inflammatory response adversely affected the outcome. The patient's extent of disease as well as medical conditions including systemic inflammatory response must be taken into consideration when deciding whether to offer a standard therapy that may increase treatment-associated mortality.