[Subset analysis of preoperative lymphocyte ratio in stage II or III colorectal cancer patients treated with oral tegafur-uracil and protein-bound polysaccharide K].

ABSTRACT

PURPOSE: We have reported, in a randomized, controlled study, that tegafur-uracil(UFT)and protein-bound polysaccharide K(PSK)combination therapy significantly improves the 5-year disease-free survival rate and reduces the risk of recurrence compared to UFT alone for Stage II or III colorectal cancer. In this study, we examined the efficacy of PSK by stratifying patients according to the preoperative lymphocyte ratio(Lym). METHODS: In a randomized, controlled study, 205 patients were eligible(137 in the UFT/PSK group and 68 in the UFT group). Of these, 193 patients with available preoperative Lym data were analysed(131 in the UFT/PSK group and 62 in the UFT group). RESULTS: Among patients with a preoperative Lym of <35%, the relapse-free survival(RFS)rate was 76.5% in the UFT/PSK group and 55.8% in the UFT group(p=0.008). However, in patients with a preoperative Lym of ≥35%, the RFS rate did not differ between the 2 groups. Similarly, overall survival was significantly higher in the UFT/PSK group than in the UFT group in patients with a preoperative Lym of <35%, whereas no intergroup difference was found among patients with a preoperative Lym of ≥35%. CONCLUSION: This study suggests that a low preoperative Lym is a good predictor for response to PSK in patients with Stage II or III colorectal cancer.