Abstract. The aim of the present study was to investigate the association between positron emission tomography (PET) parameters and peripheral inflammatory markers, and assess their prognostic value in nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC). A total of 121 patients with non-disseminated NPC were recruited. Pretreatment maximum standardized uptake values (SUVmax) of PET and peripheral inflammatory factors (leukocyte, neutrophil and monocyte counts) were recorded. Kaplan-Meier and multivariate analyses were used to identify predictors for progression-free survival (PFS), overall survival (OS), distant metastasis-free survival (DMFS) and locoregional recurrence-free survival (LRFS). The results of the present study revealed that SUVmax at the primary tumor was positively correlated with leukocytes (P= 0.025), neutrophils (P= 0.009) and monocytes (P= 0.043). SUVmax at regional lymph nodes (SUVmax-N) was significantly associated with monocytes (P= 0.024). Kaplan-Meier analysis demonstrated that SUVmax-N (>10.15) significantly predicted PFS (P=0.004) and DMFS (P= 0.003). In addition, neutrophils (>5.18) were significantly associated with PFS (P= 0.001), DMFS (P= 0.013) and LRFS (P<0.001). Multivariate analysis revealed that SUVmax-N and neutrophils retained independent prognostic significance for PFS (SUVmax-N, P= 0.026; and neutrophils, P=0.033) and DMFS (SUVmax-N, P=0.026; and neutrophils, P= 0.032). Furthermore, patients with SUVmax-N ≤10.15 and neutrophils ≤5.18 had significantly improved prognosis in PFS (96.4 vs. 58.5%, P<0.001), OS (95.7 vs. 81.1%, P=0.044), DMFS (96.4 vs. 67.0%, P<0.001) and LRFS (100 vs. 90.2%, P= 0.036) compared with those with SUVmax-N >10.15 or neutrophils >5.18. In conclusion, SUVmax may be significantly associated with cancer-associated inflammation. SUVmax-N and neutrophils were independent prognostic indicators for PFS and DMFS. Combined assessment of SUVmax-N and neutrophils may lead to refinement of risk stratification in NPC.