<p>Significance of the neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio in young patients with oral squamous cell carcinoma</p>

Abstract

Background: The main goal of this study was to evaluate the prognosis of young patients with oral squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) with a focus on the value of the pretreatment neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR). Materials and methods: Young (≤40 years old) patients with oral SCC were retrospectively enrolled, and each young patient was matched with an old (≥60 years old) oral SCC patient. Associations between the NLR and clinicopathological variables were analyzed by the chi-square test, and the Kaplan–Meier method was used to analyze recurrence-free survival (RFS) and disease-specific survival (DSS) rates. Results: A total of 103 young patients were enrolled, and compared to the old group, the young group had a significantly lower NLR value ( p =0.012). In the young group, the 5-year RFS and DSS rates were 82% and 85%, respectively. In the old group, the 5-year RFS and DSS rates were 65% and 71%, respectively, and the differences between the groups were significant (both p <0.05). In the young patients with an NLR≤2.56, the 5-year DSS rate was 93%, while in the young patients with an NLR >2.56, the 5-year DSS rate was 76%. This difference was significant ( p =0.020). A further Cox model analysis confirmed that the NLR was an independent prognostic factor for DSS. Conclusion: Young patients with oral SCC have a better prognosis than old oral SCC patients, and the NLR is significantly associated with DSS in young patients. Keywords: oral squamous cell carcinoma, young patient, head and neck cancer, neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio, survival analysis