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Abstract
Computed tomography (CT)–assessed body composition is considered a novel prognostic factor for cancer patients. Owing to the need for new prognostic markers for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) patients undergoing radiotherapy, we investigated the impact of body composition on outcomes in this patient population. We retrospectively evaluated 109 HCC patients receiving radiotherapy. The skeletal muscle index, subcutaneous adipose tissue index (SATI), and visceral adipose tissue index within 1 mo, before radiotherapy were assessed based on a single CT image slice at the level of the third lumbar (L3) vertebra. The impact of body composition parameters on progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS) was assessed. Overall, 62 (56.9%) patients died, and 47 (43.1%) patients experienced recurrence during a median follow-up period of 20.5 mo. Multivariate analysis revealed that SATI was an independent prognostic factor for both PFS (hazard ratio [HR] 0.542, P = 0.025) and OS (HR 0.385, P = 0.005). Patients with high SATI (n = 43) had significantly better PFS (P = 0.0093) and OS (P = 0.032) than those with low SATI (n = 66). CT-assessed SATI is an independent prognostic factor in HCC patients receiving radiotherapy. Further validation is warranted to determine whether this finding can be translated into other study populations.
Acknowledgment
We thank Mr. Zhitao Lin for his assistance in data analysis.
Data Availability
Data can be obtained by contacting the author at [email protected].
Disclosure of Interest
The authors report there are no competing interests to declare.
Additional information
Funding
Notes on contributors
Li-Qing Li
Li-LQ contributed to the data curation. Zhao-WD contributed to data analysis and interpretation. Su-TS contributed to the study conception and design. Wang-YD and Meng-WW contributed to data collection and assembly. Liang-SX contributed to administrative support. All authors contributed to manuscript writing and approval of the final manuscript.