Investigating the impact of the infammatory immune microenvironment and steroids or COX‑2 inhibitors usage on immunotherapy in advanced esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC): a propensity score matched analysis

• Huihui Li ^[1] ; Ning Chen ^[2] ; Wenjing Wang ^[2] ; Lisha Ye ^[2] ; Yun Fan ^[2] ; Xiaoling Xu ^[1]
  1. [1] Tongji University

     Tongji University

     China

     
  2. [2] Department of Medical Thoracic Oncology, Zhejiang Cancer Hospital, Hangzhou Institute of Medicine (HIM), Chinese Academy of Sciences, No. 1 Banshan East Road, Gongshu District, Hangzhou 310022, Zhejiang, China
• Localización: Clinical & translational oncology, ISSN 1699-048X, Vol. 27, Nº. 3, 2025, págs. 1105-1117
• Idioma: inglés
• Texto completo no disponible (Saber más ...)
• Resumen

  • Purpose The research aimed to evaluate the connection between pre-treatment infammatory biomarkers and clinical results in advanced esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) receiving immune checkpoint inhibitors.

    Materials and methods Between 2019 and 2022, we analyzed 354 individuals diagnosed with metastatic ESCC who underwent immunotherapy. The study sought to evaluate the impact of specifc infammatory biomarkers (Neutrophil/Lymphocyte Ratio (NLR), C-reactive protein to albumin ratio (CRP/ALB) and Glasgow Prognostic Score (GPS), Cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) inhibitors or steroids usage on the efectiveness and survival outcomes of immunotherapy in advanced ESCC. The research utilized Kaplan‒Meier and Cox regression models alongside propensity score matching for analysis.

    Results The fndings revealed that elevated pre-treatment NLR (11.0 vs. 14.6 months, p=0.021) and CRP/ALB (11.4 vs. 14.6 months, p=0.022) levels were signifcantly associated with poorer overall survival (OS) outcomes, while the use of steroids did not show a signifcant diference in OS (15.5 vs. 15.4 months, p=0.685) between groups. Similarly, no notable disparity in OS was observed between patients treated withCOX-2 inhibitors and those who were not (13.8 vs. 11.0 months, p=0.054).

    Conclusion Lower levels of NLR and CRP/ALB prior to treatment were linked to better efectiveness and OS in immunotherapy for advanced ESCC. The study did not identify a signifcant relationship between OS in patients with esophageal cancer and the use of either steroids or COX-2 inhibitors.