The Prevalence of Sarcopenia in Patients with Solid Tumors Differs Across Regions: A Systematic Review

Objective: The purpose of the meta-analysis was to compare the prevalence of sarcopenia on staging computed tomography (CT) in patients with solid tumors in different world regions. Materials and Methods: MEDLINE, Embase, and SCOPUS literature databases were screened for prevalence of sarcopenia in oncologic patients up to December 2022. Two hundred eighty studies met the inclusion criteria. The methodological quality of the involved studies was checked according to the Quality Assessment of Diagnostic Studies instrument. Results: Two hundred eighty studies with 81,885 patients were included. The prevalence of sarcopenia among all patients was 35.5%. Prevalence of sarcopenia was higher in Europe (45.6%) and North America (41.2%) than in Asia (29.6%). Prevalence rates for the curative cohort were similar in all three regions, with 43.7% in Europe, 41.3% in North America, and 37.4% in Asia. In the palliative cohort, sarcopenia prevalence was higher in Europe (55.7%) and Asia (45.7%) than in North America (34.0%). In the European cohort, prostate cancer (73.9%), esophageal cancer (74.2%), pancreatic cancer (62.5%), and renal cell cancer (65.3%) showed high prevalence rates of sarcopenia. Applied cutoff values differed among regions. Conclusion: Our study shows that prevalence rates for sarcopenia of patients with solid tumors differ between regions and are different for curative and palliative settings. European studies demonstrate high prevalence rates for both settings. There is need for regional harmonization of sarcopenia definitions.