Evidence map›Paper›PMID 27897393›Full record

Observational studyJournal of cachexia, sarcopenia and muscle2017

Cancer anorexia: hypothalamic activity and its association with inflammation and appetite-regulating peptides in lung cancer.

Alessio Molfino, Alessandro Iannace, Maria Chiara Colaiacomo, Alessio Farcomeni, Alessandra Emiliani, Gianfranco Gualdi, Alessandro Laviano, Filippo Rossi Fanelli

Open access · goldAbstract readObservational Study
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Observational study in Journal of cachexia, sarcopenia and muscle, 2017. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 39 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
39citing papers in PubMed, 1 pooled it
3.5field-weighted citation impact, top 7% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

39 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 67 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Pooled it
  2. Trial
  3. Article
  4. Review
  5. Review
  6. Review
  7. Biomarkers associated with cancer-related anorexia in lung cancer: a scoping review.Supportive care in cancer : official journal of the Multinational Association of Supportive Care in Cancer · 2025
    Article
  8. Article
  9. Article
  10. Immunoregulation in cancer-associated cachexia.Journal of advanced research · 2024
    Review
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  12. Review
  13. Article
  14. Review
  15. Article
  16. Review
  17. Article
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4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

8 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.

Alessio MolfinoDepartment of Clinical Medicine, Sapienza University of Rome, Rome, Italy.
Alessandro IannaceDepartment of Clinical Medicine, Sapienza University of Rome, Rome, Italy.
Maria Chiara ColaiacomoDepartment of Emergency, Radiology Unit, Policlinico Umberto I, Sapienza University of Rome, Rome, Italy.
Alessio FarcomeniDepartment of Public Health and Infectious Diseases, Sapienza University of Rome, Rome, Italy.
Alessandra EmilianiDepartment of Clinical Medicine, Sapienza University of Rome, Rome, Italy.
Gianfranco GualdiDepartment of Emergency, Radiology Unit, Policlinico Umberto I, Sapienza University of Rome, Rome, Italy.
Alessandro LavianoDepartment of Clinical Medicine, Sapienza University of Rome, Rome, Italy.
Filippo Rossi FanelliDepartment of Clinical Medicine, Sapienza University of Rome, Rome, Italy.
Sapienza University of Rome · ITPoliclinico Umberto I · IT

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundEnergy homeostasis is mediated by the hypothalamus, whose inflammation-induced functional derangements contribute to the onset of anorexia in cancer. By using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), we determined the patterns of hypothalamic activation after oral intake in anorexic (A), non-anorexic (NA) cancer patients, and in controls (C).

methodsLung cancer patients were considered. Hypothalamic activation was recorded in A and NA patients and in C by fMRI, before (T0), immediately after (T1) the administration of an oral nutritional supplement, and after 15 min (T2). The grey of the hypothalamus and Blood Oxygen Level Dependent (BOLD) intensity were calculated and normalized for basal conditions. Interleukin (IL)-1, IL-6, tumour necrosis factor (TNF)-α, ghrelin, and leptin plasma levels were measured. A statistical parametric mapping was used.

resultsThirteen lung cancer patients (7 M, 6 F; 9A, 4NA) and 2 C (1 M, 1 F) were enrolled. Controls had the lowest BOLD intensity. At all-time points, anorexic patients showed lower hypothalamic activity compared with NA (P < 0.001) (T0: 585.57 ± 55.69 vs. 667.92 ± 33.18, respectively; T1: 536.50 ± 61.70 vs. 624.49 ± 55.51, respectively; T2: 556.44 ± 58.51 vs. 615.43 ± 71.50, respectively). Anorexic patients showed greater BOLD signal reduction during T0-T1 than NA (-8.5% vs. -6.80%, P < 0.001). Independently from the presence of anorexia, BOLD signals modification before and after oral challenge correlated with basal values of IL-1 and ghrelin (P < 0.001).

conclusionsHypothalamic activity in A cancer patients is reduced respect to NA and responds differently to oral challenges. This suggests a central control of appetite dysregulation during cancer anorexia, before, and after oral intake.

Indexed as

AppetiteAgedAged, 80 and overAnorexiaCarcinoma, Non-Small-Cell LungCytokinesDietary SupplementsFemaleGhrelinHumansHypothalamusInflammationLeptinLung NeoplasmsMagnetic Resonance ImagingMaleCytokinesGhrelinLeptinAnorexiaCancerfMRIGhrelinInflammationLeptin

Identifiers

PMID27897393
PMCPMC5326827
OpenAlexW2529137235

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY-NC-ND
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.