Positive correlation between sarcopenia and elevation of neutrophil/lymphocyte ration in pathological stage IIIA (N2-positive) non-small cell lung cancer patients

Objective Surgical indication in stage IIIA (N2) non-small cell lung cancer is still controversial. Hence, there is a need for the identification of predictors of the postoperative outcome in these patients. Although sarcopenia is expected to be a novel predictor of postoperative outcome in these patients, the underlying clinical features of sarcopenia have not been well investigated. Elevation of neutrophil/lymphocyte ratio indicates cancer-associated inflammation and depression of anticancer immunity. We analyzed the influence of sarcopenia on postoperative prognosis, and investigated the relationship between sarcopenia and neutrophil/lymphocyte ratio in patients with stage IIIA (N2) non-small cell lung cancer. Methods We retrospectively investigated 69 patients with stage IIIA (N2) non-small cell lung cancer. We used the L3 muscle index as a clinical measurement of sarcopenia, and divided patients into the sarcopenic ( n = 21) and the non-sarcopenic group ( n = 48). We then investigated the effect of sarcopenia on postoperative prognosis, and evaluated the correlation between sarcopenia and neutrophil/lymphocyte ratio. Results This study included 47 males and 22 females. Univariate analysis revealed that sarcopenia, performance status, and serum cytokeratin-19 fragment level were predictors of poor prognosis; multivariate analysis revealed that performance status and sarcopenia were independent predictors of poor prognosis. The presence of sarcopenia was significantly correlated with neutrophil/lymphocyte ratio elevation. Conclusions Sarcopenia is a novel predictor of poor prognosis in patients with stage IIIA (N2) non-small cell lung cancer. Neutrophil/lymphocyte ratio elevation might be the reason for poor prognosis in sarcopenic patients.