Source
Department of Gastrointestinal Cancer, Tianjin Cancer Hospital, Key Laboratory of Cancer Prevention and Treatment of Tianjin City, Tianjin Medical University, Tianjin 300060, China.
Abstract
OBJECTIVE:
To evaluate the prognostic significance of preoperative serum albumin in patients with gastric cancer undergoing radical resection.
METHODS:
A total of 146 patients with gastric cancer underwent radical resection from January 2001 to December 2003. Clinicopathological data were analyzed retrospectively. Patients were divided into two groups, including patients with a normal preoperative serum albumin level(>35 g/L, n=115) and patients with hypoalbuminemia (≤35 g/L, n=31).
RESULTS:
Patients with a low albumin level were associated with a higher postoperative recurrence rate(90.3% vs. 43.5%, P<0.01). The overall 5-year survival rate in patients with a normal serum albumin level was significantly higher than that in patients with a low serum level(57.4% vs. 9.7%, P<0.01). On multivariate analysis, preoperative serum albumin level was an independent factor associated with survival(P<0.01). When stratified by nodal metastasis, normal serum albumin level was still associated with higher survival rate(P<0.05). Prognostic significance was found in patients with lower stomach cancer(P<0.01), but not in patients with cancer in the upper and middle stomach(P>0.05).
CONCLUSION:
Hypoalbuminemia is associated with worse survival in patients with cancer in the lower stomach and adjuvant therapy should be considered.