Association of Preoperative Sarcopenia with the Long-term Prognosis of Patients with Bladder Cancer Undergoing Radical Cystectomy

Overview

Journal J Cancer Res Clin Oncol

Specialty Oncology

Date 2024 Apr 3

PMID 38568255

Authors

Sangmin Lee

Youngjoon Yoon

Jungyo Suh

Dalsan You

Bumsik Hong

Jun Hyuk Hong

Hanjong Ahn

In Gab Jeong

Bumjin Lim

Affiliations

Soon will be listed here.

Abstract

Purpose: This retrospective study aimed to assess the correlation between preoperative sarcopenia and long-term oncologic outcomes in patients undergoing radical cystectomy for bladder cancer.

Methods: We included 528 patients who underwent radical cystectomy for bladder cancer between 2000 and 2010 at Asan Medical Center, Seoul, Korea. Preoperative skeletal muscle mass was quantified by analyzing computed tomography images at the third lumbar vertebra. Sarcopenia was defined based on the skeletal muscle index. We evaluated various clinical and pathological factors to analyze the association between sarcopenia and long-term oncologic outcomes.

Results: The median follow-up time was 104 months. Sarcopenia was identified in 37.9% of the patients. Although no significant differences were observed in traditional pathological factors between the sarcopenic and non-sarcopenic groups, sarcopenia was significantly associated with worse oncologic outcomes. Compared to the non-sarcopenic groups, the sarcopenic group had lower overall survival rates (52.0% vs. 67.1% at 5 years, 35.5% vs. 52.7% at 10 years) and higher cancer-specific mortality (63.3% vs. 74.3% at 5 years, 50.7% vs. 67.4% at 10 years). Multivariable Cox regression analysis demonstrated that sarcopenia was an independent predictor of cancer-specific survival (hazard ratio: 1.49, 95% confidence interval: 1.11-2.01, p = 0.008), alongside body mass index, tumor stage, lymph node metastasis, and lymphovascular invasion.

Conclusion: Sarcopenia was significantly associated with poor cancer-specific survival in patients undergoing radical cystectomy for bladder cancer. Detecting sarcopenia may assist in preoperative risk stratification and long-term management after radical cystectomy.

Citing Articles

Preoperative myosteatosis and perioperative serum chloride levels predict 180 day major complications after radical cystectomy.

Sornthai W, Teyateeti A, Taweemonkongsap T, Jitpraphai S, Woranisarakul V, Jongjitaree K Sci Rep. 2025; 15(1):3184.

PMID: 39863786 PMC: 11763002. DOI: 10.1038/s41598-025-87655-8.

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