Prognostic Value of Preoperative Neutrophil-to -Lymphocyte Ratio in Adenoid Cystic Carcinoma of the Head and Neck

Abstract

BackgroundStudies in recent years have shown that the neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) is associated with the survival and prognosis of patients with malignant tumors.However, the utility of the NLR in predicting outcomes in patients with adenoid cystic carcinoma (ACC) of the head and neck remains unclear. Here, we examined the prognostic value of the preoperative NLR in patients with ACC of the head and neck.MethodsThis study retrospectively analyzed 71 patients with a histopathological diagnosis of ACC from August 2005 to November 2020.The optimal cutoff value was obtained by receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis. The characteristics of the patients were evaluated using chi-squared tests.The value of the NLR used in predicting the outcomes of these patients was analyzed using Kaplan-Meier curves and Cox regression models.ResultsThe cutoff value of the NLR was 2.071. The chi-squared tests showed that a high NLR(>2.071)was associated with tumor stage and lymph node metastasis(LNM). Kaplan-Meier survival analysis showed that the NLR>2.071 group was correlated with a shorter Overall survival(P<0.05). In multivariate Cox regression analysis, high NLR (>2.071) and high age (>54 years) were independent risk factors predicting poorer outcomes in patients with ACC.ConclusionsWe suggest that the preoperative NLR is a useful biomarker for the prognosis of patients with ACC.