Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jun 5, 2025
Competing-Risk Nomogram for Predicting Cancer-Specific Survival in Multiple Primary Colorectal Cancer Patients after Surgery
Published on: September 27, 2024
The Prognostic Value of Preoperative C-Reactive Protein Levels in Resected Early-Stage Lung Cancer
Alberto Lopez-Pastorini1, Zehra Tatli2, Antonia von Bargen3
1Department of Thoracic Surgery, Cologne-Merheim Hospital, Witten/Herdecke University Hospital, Cologne, Germany; Faculty of Medicine, Witten/Herdecke University, Witten, Germany.
Introduction:
C-reactive protein (CRP) is the most widely used marker of the systemic inflammatory response. An association between preoperative elevated levels and prognosis has been demonstrated for numerous tumors. The aim of this study was to investigate the association between preoperative CRP levels and survival in early-stage nonsmall cell lung cancer.
Methods:
Data from 915 consecutive patients who underwent complete resection for stage I and II nonsmall cell lung cancer were retrospectively analyzed. Recurrence-free survival (RFS) and overall survival (OS) according to preoperative CRP levels were evaluated by the Kaplan-Meier method. The Cox proportional hazards model and logistic regression analysis were used for multivariate analysis.
Results:
Five-year RFS and OS were 61.0% and 70.3% in the low CRP group (<4 mg/L) and 41.8% and 49.4% in the high CRP group (≥4 mg/L), respectively (P < 0.001). In univariate analysis, CRP levels were correlated with indicators of tumor burden and pulmonary comorbidity. In multivariate analysis, CRP levels were identified as an independent predictor of RFS and OS.
Conclusions:
Elevated preoperative CRP is associated with poor prognosis in patients with early-stage lung cancer. CRP may guide risk-adapted follow-up and adjuvant therapy decisions. As CRP elevation is also associated with nontumor related conditions patients need to be screened for coexisting comorbidities.
