Prognostic Impact of ABO Blood Group on Survival in Patients With Malignant Lymphoma

The ABO blood group is reported to be associated with survival for several types of malignancy. We conducted a retrospective study to evaluate the prognostic significance of the ABO blood group in patients with malignant lymphoma.

A total of 523 patients with malignant lymphoma were included in this study. The primary outcome measured was the association between the ABO blood group and survival.

Patients with blood group B had shorter 5-year overall survival (OS) than patients with non-B blood groups (40.9% vs. 57.3%; P < .01). Among 240 patients with diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL), patients with blood group B had shorter 5-year OS in comparison with patients with non-B blood groups (36.3% vs. 56.9%; P < .01). Among male patients with DLBCL, those with blood group B had significantly shorter 5-year OS than those with non-B blood groups (27.5% vs. 55.8%; P = .003). On the other hand, there was no significant difference in the survival between female patients with blood group B and those with non-B blood groups (5-year OS: 49.2% vs. 58.2%; P = .67). A multivariate analysis demonstrated that blood group B (hazard ratio, 1.83; 95% confidence interval, 1.21-2.78; P = .04) was an independent predictor of shorter OS in male patients with DLBCL.

The ABO blood group is associated with survival in patients with lymphoma. Interestingly, only male patients with DLBCL with blood group B had significantly shorter OS than those male patients with DLBCL with non-B blood groups.