RESUMO
OBJECTIVES: To study the role of the neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio in predicting survival outcomes for patients with advanced bladder cancer. METHODS: We retrospectively reviewed 150 patients diagnosed with advanced or metastatic bladder cancer between January 2004 and June 2014. The neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio was computed on diagnosis and after the first cycle of chemotherapy. A neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio cut-off of 3.0 was determined, with a concordance index of 0.89. Kaplan-Meier curves, log-rank tests, Cox proportional hazards and logistic regression models were used to predict the association of the neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio with survival outcomes. RESULTS: Just five patients were alive at the end of the study; the rest died from metastatic bladder cancer. On multivariate analysis, higher Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group status, lymphadenopathy, visceral metastases and neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio ≥3.0 were associated with poorer overall survival (hazard ratio 1.67, P = 0.03; hazard ratio 1.97, P = <0.01; hazard ratio 2.02, P = <0.01; hazard ratio 5.06, P = <0.01), whereas chemotherapy conferred better overall survival (hazard ratio 0.546, P = 0.01). Furthermore, the role of chemotherapy prolonged survival longer in patients with a neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio <3.0 (median overall survival 13.0 vs 22.0 months, hazard ratio 0.273, P = 0.008) compared with a neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio ≥3.0 (median overall survival 4.0 vs 7.0 months, hazard ratio 0.452, P = 0.020). More importantly, when dichotomized to the four different pre- and post-chemotherapy groups, patients with a pre- and post-chemotherapy neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio <3.0 had the best additional median overall survival of 19.0 months compared with patients with a pre- and post-chemotherapy neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio ≥3.0 (3.0 months). CONCLUSIONS: Elevated neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio is independently associated with poorer chemotherapeutic response and overall survival in patients with advanced or metastatic bladder cancer. The neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio can be an inexpensive novel factor in prognosticating disease progression and providing better patient counseling.