Impact of Pretreatment Body Mass Index on the Survival of Head and Neck Cancer Patients

Authors

Zheng Yang
Jobran Mansour
Peng Sun
Peng Wei
Kristina R Dahlstrom
Mark Zafereo
Guojun Li
Neil D Gross

Publication Date

8-1-2024

Journal

Head & Neck

DOI

10.1002/hed.27659

PMID

38269627

PMCID

PMC11227405

PubMedCentral® Posted Date

8-1-2025

PubMedCentral® Full Text Version

Author MSS

Abstract

Background: Differences in pretreatment body mass index (BMI) have been associated with survival in squamous cell carcinoma of head and neck (SCCHN). We examined effects of BMI on survival in SCCHN patients after stratifying patients by tumor human papillomavirus (HPV) status and subsite.

Methods: Totally 2204 SCCHN patients in a prospective study were included in this secondary analysis. Multivariable Cox models were used to evaluate associations between pretreatment BMI and overall survival, disease-specific survival, and disease-free survival.

Results: BMI was significantly higher among patients with HPV-positive tumors than HPV-negative tumors. BMI >25 kg/m2 was associated with improved survival, while BMI < 18.5 kg/m2 was associated with reduced survival, particularly in patients with HPV-positive oropharyngeal cancer tumors.

Conclusions: This exploratory analysis suggests that pretreatment BMI could be an independent prognostic factor of survival outcomes in SCCHN patients, particularly in patients with HPV-positive oropharyngeal cancer tumors. Further prospective investigations are warranted.

Keywords

Humans, Body Mass Index, Male, Female, Middle Aged, Head and Neck Neoplasms, Prospective Studies, Aged, Squamous Cell Carcinoma of Head and Neck, Prognosis, Papillomavirus Infections, Carcinoma, Squamous Cell, Proportional Hazards Models, Disease-Free Survival, Adult, Oropharyngeal Neoplasms, Survival Rate, Survival Analysis, Body mass index, squamous cell carcinoma of head and neck, HPV, oropharyngeal cancer, survival

Published Open-Access

yes

Recommended Citation

Yang, Zheng; Mansour, Jobran; Sun, Peng; et al., "Impact of Pretreatment Body Mass Index on the Survival of Head and Neck Cancer Patients" (2024). Faculty, Staff and Student Publications. 4840.
https://digitalcommons.library.tmc.edu/uthgsbs_docs/4840