Sarcopenia is not a prognostic factor of outcome in patients with cervical cancer undergoing concurrent chemoradiotherapy or radiotherapy

Abstract

Background/Aim: The objective of this study was to determine if sarcopenia was a predictor of poor prognosis in patients with cervical cancer (CC) undergoing concurrent chemoradiation therapy (CCRT) or radiation therapy (RT). Materials and Methods: A total of 236 patients with CC undergoing CCRT or RT were retrospectively examined. We determined if clinical characteristics and survival were correlated with pretreatment sarcopenia, measured as psoas muscle index (PI) or skeletal muscle index (SMI). Results: Pretreatment PI and SMI were related to parametrial involvement with CC undergoing CCRT or RT (p=0.002, and, p=0.034, respectively). The median progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS) times in patients undergoing CCRT or RT were 29.0 and 34.5 months, respectively. Neither PI nor SMI were prognostic predictors in patients with CC undergoing CCRT or RT. Conclusion: Sarcopenia is not a predictive factor of outcome in patients with CC undergoing CCRT or RT.