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Inflammatory Indexes as Prognostic and Predictive Factors in Ovarian Cancer Treated with Chemotherapy Alone or Together with Bevacizumab. A Multicenter, Retrospective Analysis by the MITO Group (MITO 24)

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Abstract

Background

The variability in progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS) among patients with epithelial ovarian cancer (EOC) makes it difficult to reliably predict outcomes. A predictive biomarker of bevacizumab efficacy as first-line therapy in EOC is still lacking.

Objective

The MITO group conducted a multicenter, retrospective study (MITO 24) to investigate the role of inflammatory indexes as prognostic factors and predictors of treatment efficacy in FIGO stage III–IV EOC patients treated with first-line chemotherapy alone or in combination with bevacizumab.

Patients and Methods

Of the 375 patients recruited, 301 received chemotherapy alone and 74 received chemotherapy with bevacizumab. The pre-treatment neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR), platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio (PLR), and systemic immune inflammation index (SII) were evaluated to identify a potential correlation with PFS and OS in both the overall population and the two treatment arms.

Results

In the overall population, the PFS and OS were significantly longer in patients with low inflammatory indexes (p < 0.0001). In multivariate analyses, the NLR was significantly associated with OS (p = 0.016), and the PLR was significantly associated with PFS (p = 0.024). Inflammatory indexes were significantly correlated with patient prognosis in the chemotherapy-alone group (p < 0.0001). Patients in the chemotherapy with bevacizumab group with a high NLR had a higher PFS and OS (p = 0.026 and p = 0.029, respectively) than those in the chemotherapy-alone group. Conversely, PFS and OS were significantly poorer in patients with a high SII (p = 0.024 and p = 0.017, respectively).

Conclusion

Our results suggest that bevacizumab improves clinical outcome in patients with a high NLR but may be detrimental in those with a high SII.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Medical Oncology, Istituto Scientifico Romagnolo per lo Studio e la Cura dei Tumori (IRST) IRCCS, Meldola, Italy

    Alberto Farolfi & Ugo De Giorgi

  2. Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milan, Italy

    Micaela Petrone & Raffaella Cioffi

  3. Biostatistic and Clinical trials Unit, Istituto Scientifico Romagnolo per lo Studio e la Cura dei Tumori (IRST) IRCCS, Meldola, Italy

    Emanuela Scarpi & Valentina Gallà

  4. Medical Oncology Unit, ULSS 9 Regione Veneto, Legnago, Italy

    Filippo Greco & Eva Pigozzi

  5. Department of Medical Oncology, Santa Maria delle Croci Hospital, Ravenna, Italy

    Claudia Casanova

  6. Medical Oncology Unit, Ramazzini Hospital, Carpi, Italy

    Lucia Longo & Donatella Giardina

  7. Gynecology Oncology Unit, Università degli Studi di Bari & IRCCS Istituto Oncologico “Giovanni Paolo II”, Bari, Italy

    Gennaro Cormio & Vera Loizzi

  8. Department of Clinical and Experimental Medicine “F. Magrassi”, Università degli Studi della Campania “Luigi Vanvitelli ”, Naples, Italy

    Michele Orditura & Elisena Franzese

  9. Medical Oncology Unit, Clinical Cancer Centre, IRCCS–Arcispedale S. Maria Nuova, Reggio Emilia, Italy

    Alessandra Bologna

  10. Department Medical Oncology, Infermi Hospital, Biella, Italy

    Laura Zavallone

  11. Department of Uro-Gynaecological Oncology, Istituto Nazionale Tumori “Fondazione G. Pascale” IRCCS, Naples, Italy

    Jole Ventriglia & Sandro Pignata

  12. Department of Gynecological Oncology, Centro di Riferimento Oncologico (CRO) IRCCS, Aviano, Italy

    Giorgio Giorda

Authors
  1. Alberto Farolfi
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  2. Micaela Petrone
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  19. Giorgio Giorda
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  20. Ugo De Giorgi
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Ugo De Giorgi.

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Funding

No external funding was used in the preparation of this manuscript.

Conflict of Interest

Alberto Farolfi, Micaela Petrone, Emanuela Scarpi, Valentina Gallà, Filippo Greco, Claudia Casanova, Lucia Longo, Gennaro Cormio, Michele Orditura, Alessandra Bologna, Laura Zavallone, Jole Ventriglia, Elisena Franzese, Vera Loizzi, Donatella Giardina, Eva Pigozzi, Raffaella Cioffi, Sandro Pignata, Giorgio Giorda, and Ugo De Giorgi declare that they have no conflicts of interest that might be relevant to the contents of this manuscript.

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Farolfi, A., Petrone, M., Scarpi, E. et al. Inflammatory Indexes as Prognostic and Predictive Factors in Ovarian Cancer Treated with Chemotherapy Alone or Together with Bevacizumab. A Multicenter, Retrospective Analysis by the MITO Group (MITO 24). Targ Oncol 13, 469–479 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11523-018-0574-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11523-018-0574-1

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