Relationship between preoperative erythrocyte sedimentation rate and survival after surgery in patients with colorectal cancer

Abstract

Aim: To investigate the relationship between erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR) and postoperative survival of patients with colorectal cancer (CRC). Materials and Methods: Relationships between clinical characteristics and overall survival (OS) of patients with CRC were investigated using multivariate analysis. Receiver operating characteristics curve analysis was performed to decide the ideal cut-off values of clinical characteristics to divide patients into two groups, which were then compared using a survival curve analysis. Results: Three hundred and eleven patients with CRC undergoing surgery were enrolled. Multivariate analysis showed that ESR >40 mm/h (hazard ratio(HR)=2.601, 95% confidence interval(CI)=1.187-5.697; p=0.017) was associated with poorer OS, along with non-tubular pathology (p=0.034). Kaplan–Meier analysis revealed that patients with ESR >40 mm/h had poorer postoperative survival than those without ESR elevation (p<0.001). Conclusion: Preoperative elevation of ESR (>40 mm/h) can predict poorer postoperative survival in patients with CRC.