Performance of Current Thromboembolism Risk Assessment Tools in Patients With Gastric Cancer and Validity After First...

Area of Science:

• Oncology
• Hematology
• Clinical Prediction Models

Background:

• Patients with gastric cancer (GC) exhibit a higher incidence of venous thromboembolism (VTE) compared to those with other solid tumors.
• Existing VTE predictive tools require validation for their performance and consistency in GC patients, especially after initial treatment.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the predictive accuracy of established VTE risk assessment tools in gastric cancer patients.
• To determine the validity and variability of these tools, including the Khorana Score (KRS), platelet to lymphocyte ratio (PLR), and neutrophil to lymphocyte ratio (NLR), following the first-line cancer treatment.

Main Methods:

• A single-institution cohort study involving 112 gastric cancer patients treated between 2010 and 2015.
• Analysis of baseline and post-treatment data, assessing the predictive performance of KRS, PLR, and NLR for VTE.
• Statistical evaluation included univariate and multivariate analyses to identify independent predictors of VTE.

Main Results:

• The overall incidence of VTE in the cohort was 12%, with a median time to occurrence of 59 days post-diagnosis.
• At baseline, performance status (PS) was an independent predictor of VTE, while KRS, PLR, and NLR did not show significant association.
• Post-treatment, both PS and the Khorana Score (KRS) emerged as independent predictors of VTE, with posttreatment KRS demonstrating predictive validity.

Conclusions:

• Performance status is a critical factor in VTE risk for gastric cancer patients.
• The Khorana Score (KRS), when assessed after initial treatment, serves as a valid and independent predictor for identifying gastric cancer patients at high risk of developing VTE.