title: Nutritional status, acute phase response and depression in metastatic lung cancer patients: correlations and association prognosis.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Cancer cachexia is a metabolic syndrome related with poor outcome. Cytokines play a key role in the pathophysiology of that syndrome. The aim of this study was to investigate the potential correlations between nutritional status, systemic inflammation, and psychological distress in cancer patients. The prognostic significance of the recorded parameters was also assessed.
  
  
  METHODS
  Patients with metastatic lung cancer were eligible. Mini Nutritional Assessment (MNA) was used for the evaluation of nutritional status, Glasgow Prognostic Score (GPS) for the estimation of systemic inflammation, and Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) for psychological assessment.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Totally, 122 patients were enrolled (71.3% with NSCLC and 28.7% with SCLC). The following correlations were observed: MNA and GPS (r = 0.289, p = 0.001), MNA and HADS (depression scale) (r = 0.275, p = 0.002), GPS and HADS (depression scale) (r = 0.256, p = 0.004), and GPS and HADS (anxiety scale) (r =0.194, p =0.033). In univariate analysis, GPS (p = 0.002) and MNA (p = 0.010) emerged as significant predictors of survival. In multivariate analysis, both MNA (p = 0.032) and GPS (p = 0.020) retained their importance.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  This study highlights the associations between nutritional status, systemic inflammation, and psychological distress, supporting their common underlying pathophysiological mechanisms and further suggesting the necessity of a holistic anti-cachectic approach.
authors.affiliation: Department of Medical Oncology, University General Hospital of Heraklion, Stavrakia and Voutes, Heraklion, 71110, Crete, Greece. georgsec@med.uoc.gr
authors.forename: Zoe
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Giannousi
authors.forename: Ioannis
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Gioulbasanis
authors.forename: Athanasios G
authors.initials: AG
authors.lastname: Pallis
authors.forename: Alexandros
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Xyrafas
authors.forename: Danai
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Dalliani
authors.forename: Kostas
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Kalbakis
authors.forename: Vassilis
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Papadopoulos
authors.forename: Dimitris
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Mavroudis
authors.forename: Vassilis
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Georgoulias
authors.forename: Christos N
authors.initials: CN
authors.lastname: Papandreou
mesh_terms: D000210:Acute-Phase Reaction / Q000209:etiology*; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D002097:C-Reactive Protein / Q000378:metabolism; D003863:Depression / Q000209:etiology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008175:Lung Neoplasms / Q000473:pathology / Q000523:psychology*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009362:Neoplasm Metastasis; D009752:Nutritional Status; D011379:Prognosis; D018570:Risk Assessment; D012709:Serum Albumin / Q000032:analysis; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires
chemical_list: D012709:Serum Albumin; D002097:C-Reactive Protein