Usefulness of albumin–globulin ratio as a clinical prognostic factor in patients with thyroid cancer treated with radioiodine

Objective Albumin–globulin ratio (AGR), which is calculated by dividing serum albumin by serum globulin, is considered as a cancer-related inflammation biomarker. Although the prognosis of many solid cancers has been shown to be associated with AGR, there are no studies to demonstrate the association between the prognosis of thyroid cancer and AGR. The purpose of this study is to reveal the relationship between AGR and overall survival (OS) in patients with thyroid cancer who received radioactive iodine therapy (RIT). Methods Eighty-eight patients with thyroid cancer who had received RIT for the first time in our institution were included. The values before RIT were adopted as initial measurements for serum albumin, globulin, and thyroglobulin (Tg) and used for analysis. Patients were divided into two groups based on the AGR value. We analyzed the relationship between clinical factors and treatment outcome. Results The median follow-up period was 92.4 months (range: 30.1–173.9 months). The 5-year OS and progression-free survival (PFS) were 94% and 54%, respectively. Seventeen patients (