Open AccessPrognostic Impact of Pretreatment Plasma Fibrinogen in Patients with Locally Advanced Oral and Oropharyngeal Cancer
Author(s) -
Daniel Holzinger,
Ivan Danilovic,
Rudolf Seemann,
Gabriela Kornek,
Johannes Engelmann,
Robert Pillerstorff,
Simone Holawe,
Amanda Psyrri,
Boban M. Erovic,
D. Gregory Farwell,
Christos Perisanidis
Publication year - 2016
Publication title -
plos one
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.99
H-Index - 332
ISSN - 1932-6203
DOI - 10.1371/journal.pone.0158697
Subject(s) - fibrinogen , medicine , hazard ratio , oncology , proportional hazards model , gastroenterology , chemoradiotherapy , univariate analysis , clinical endpoint , survival analysis , cancer , multivariate analysis , confidence interval , clinical trial
Background We aimed to determine the prognostic significance of pretreatment plasma fibrinigen in patients with oral and oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma (OOSCC). Methods A cohort of 183 patients with locally advanced OOSCC receiving preoperative chemoradiotherapy was retrospectively examined. Using ROC curve analysis, a pretreatment plasma fibrinogen cutoff value of 447mg/dL was determined. The primary endpoints were overall survival and recurrence-free survival. A secondary endpoint was to determine whether pretreatment plasma fibrinogen could predict treatment response to neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy. Cox regression models and Kaplan–Meier curves were used for survival analyses. Results Seventy-one patients had an elevated pretreatment plasma fibrinogen (fibrinogen >447mg/dL). Patients with high fibrinogen showed significantly higher pathologic stages after neoadjuvant treatment than those with low fibrinogen (p = 0.037). In univariate analysis, elevated fibrinogen was associated with poor overall survival (p = 0.005) and recurrence-free survival (p = 0.008) Multivariate analysis revealed that elevated fibrinogen remained an independent risk factor for death (hazard ratio 1.78, 95% CI 1.09–2.90, p = 0.021) and relapse (hazard ratio 1.78, 95% CI 1.11–2.86, p = 0.016). Conclusion Elevated pretreatment plasma fibrinogen is associated with lack of response to neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy and reduced OS and RFS in patients with OOSCC. Thus, plasma fibrinogen may emerge as a novel prognostic indicator and a potential therapeutic target in OOSCC.