Pre treatment Neutrophil to Lymphocyte Ratio and Total Cholesterol Levels as Biomarkers for Breast Cancer
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.35516/jjps.v18i2.2989Keywords:
Breast cancer, NLR, total cholesterolAbstract
Background: Breast cancer is one of the most common cancers worldwide. The effectiveness of treatment in different breast cancer types depends on clinicopathological characteristics. Several factors can influence tumor aggressiveness, with the neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) and total cholesterol (TC) being among the most prevalent. Due to the limited number of studies evaluating the relationship between these markers and tumor stage, this study aimed to investigate the role of NLR and total cholesterol as biomarkers in relation to breast cancer stage.
Methods: We evaluated 101 newly diagnosed breast cancer patients and analyzed NLR and total cholesterol (TC) in relation to clinicopathological parameters, based on cut-off values determined using the Receiver Operating Characteristic (ROC) curve.
Results: Breast cancer stage was significantly associated with NLR, total cholesterol, neutrophil count, and white blood cell (WBC) count (p < 0.05). Based on tumor stage, cut-off values were determined to be 2 for NLR and 194 mg/dL for total cholesterol, considering the optimal points of sensitivity and specificity from the ROC curve. Higher NLR was significantly associated with increased tumor size (p = 0.004) and lymph node metastasis (p = 0.021). Higher total cholesterol was associated with increased BMI (p = 0.002), tumor size (p = 0.04), lymph node metastasis (p = 0.001), and tumor grade (p = 0.013). Additionally, higher NLR was significantly associated with increased total cholesterol levels (p = 0.004).
Conclusions: Pretreatment NLR and total cholesterol may serve as useful predictors of breast cancer stage. Elevated levels of NLR and total cholesterol were associated with more advanced tumor characteristics. Further large-scale studies are recommended to explore their association with survival and recurrence rates.
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