Dr. Iwase on Elevated Neutrophil to Lymphocyte Ratio to Predict Survival Outcome in TNBC

Toshiaki Iwase, MD, Department of General Surgery, Chiba Graduate School of Medicine, Chiba, Japan, discusses a study that examined elevated neutrophil to lymphocyte ratio to predict survival outcomes after recurrence in patients with triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC).

Recent studies show that obesity plays a role in causing chronic inflammation and limited research focuses on effects of obesity on recurrent breast cancer treatments. In this study, researchers sought to clarify the impact of obesity-related inflammation by using the neutrophil to lymphocyte ratio in recurrent breast cancer treatment.

Results showed that there was no correlation between obesity and the neutrophil to lymphocyte ratio, Iwase explains. However, it was found that the intrinsic subtype was significantly related to inflammation, leading to pre-sarcopenia and a worse overall survival.