BACKGROUND: Esophageal cancer remains a disease with poor survival and many complications despite therapeutic advancements and constant improvements of prognosis. Among the possible predictive factors of negative outcomes that can guide our treatment strategies mucle depletion has emerged as a useful parameter in cancer as well as in other diseases. CT image analysis can identify patients with diminished muscle mass (sarcopenia) and poor muscle quality because of fat infiltration (myosteatosis). Other risk factors have also been shown to predict survival in resectable esophageal cancer.
AIM: Our aim was to ascertain the prevalence and study the impact of sarcopenia and myosteatosis in resectable esophageal cancer on overall survival and complications. We additionally wanted to test the predictive value of other potential predictors of long term survival.
METHOD: 139 patients received a radical esophagectomy with or without neoadjuvant therapy. Skeletal muscle area (SMA) and muscle attenuation (MA) in CT images at the 3rd lumbar vertebra level were recorded and patients were stratified into sarcopenia/non-sarcopenia and myosteatosis/non-myosteatosis groups by comparing their measured values with those of a healthy population. Groups were compared for overall survival (OS) and complication rates (perioperative mortality, conduit complications, pleuropulmonary complications, respiratory failure requiring mechanical ventilation and other significant complications). A multivariate Cox survival analysis was also performed.
RESULTS: Prevalence of sarcopenia and myosteatosis at presentation was 16,5% and 51,8%, respectively. Both sarcopenia and myosteatosis were associated with decreased overall survival (log rank p=0,042 and p=0,044, respectively). Myosteatosis but not sarcopenia was associated with a lower incidence of conduit complications (OR 0,238, 95% CI 0,082-0,692, p=0,005). No other association between sarcopenia or myosteatosis and perioperative mortality or other complications was found. Myosteatosis as well as male sex, weight loss of 10% or more, low performance status and a higher ratio of positive to harvested lymph nodes were statistically significant predictors of worse survival in multivariate Cox analysis.
CONCLUSION: Sarcopenia and myosteatosis - markers of muscle depletion and nutritional status - before esophagectomy for esophageal cancer are associated with inferior overall survival but not with perioperative mortality or other complications. Myosteatosis was associated with a decreased risk of conduit complications. Myosteatosis, male sex, weight loss of 10% or more, low performance status and a higher ratio of positive to harvested lymph nodes were predictors of poor survival. Identification and prevention of risk factors can help guide therapeutic decisions and improve results.
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