The Prognostic Value of Perioperative Platelet and Leukocyte Values in Patients Undergoing Radical Cystectomy: A Prospective Long-Term Cohort Study

Abstract

Introduction: Studies assessing the impact of preoperative and first-day postoperative values of leukocytes, thrombocytes, and platelet/leukocyte ratio (PLR) after radical cystectomy (RC) are sparse. We aimed to assess the impact of these factors on long-term survival after RC. Methods: An analysis of patients undergoing open RC from 2004 to 2023 at our center was performed. Leukocytosis was defined as ≥8,000 leukocytes/μL and thrombocytosis as ≥400,000 thrombocytes/μL. Similarly, the cutoff for PLR was set at 28. A multivariable Cox regression analysis was performed to assess the role of leukocytosis, thrombocytosis and PLR on long-term survival after RC. For all analyses hazard ratios (HRs) with the corresponding 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were estimated. Results: A total of 1,817 patients with a median age of 70 years (IQR: 62-77) were included. Overall, 804 (44%), 175 (10%), and 1,296 (71%) patients presented with leukocytosis, thrombocytosis, and PLR ≥28 preoperatively. Accordingly, 1,414 (78%), 37 (2%), and 249 (14%) patients presented with leukocytosis, thrombocytosis, and PLR ≥28 on the first day after RC. At a median follow-up of 26 months (IQR: 8-68) after RC, 896 (49%) patients died. In the multivariate Cox regression analysis after adjusting for major perioperative risk factors, only preoperative leukocytosis (HR: 1.3, 95%CI: 1.1-1.6, p=0.01), as well as both preoperative and first-day thrombocytosis (HR: 2.1, 95%CI: 1.5-2.9 and HR: 2.8, 95%CI: 1.6-5.1, p<0.001, accordingly) were associated with worse overall survival. Conclusion: PLR should not be used as a prognostic marker for survival after RC. On the contrary, preoperative leukocytosis, as well as preoperative and first-day thrombocytosis should raise awareness among clinicians performing RC, since they were independently associated with worse survival after RC.