Weight loss as a prognostic factor for recurrence and survival in oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma patients

Although the mortality rate of oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma (OPSCC) has been decreasing over the last 30 years, there has been a significant increase in the frequency of diagnosis of this type of cancer in several countries. Beyond the classic prognostic factors, such as TNM stage, there is a lack of predictive factors for recurrence and treatment response. A retrospective analysis of patients with OPSCC treated at the Oncology Department of the Santa Terezinha University Hospital between 2007 and 2012 was performed, with the aim of identifying new prognostic factors. In addition to the significance of clinical stage as a prognostic factor for recurrence, OPSCC patients with advanced TNM stage and those treated with radiotherapy, chemoradiation or palliative measures, had a worse prognosis. Patients with moderate or severe weight loss (>5%) at diagnosis had a higher tumor recurrence rate compared with those with mild or no weight loss (P=0.007). Furthermore, 76.9% of patients with moderate or severe weight loss, as opposed to 13.3% of patients with mild or no weight loss, eventually succumbed to the disease (P=0.0001). These data suggest that moderate and severe weight loss at diagnosis is a prognostic factor for OPSCC and it is associated with disease recurrence.