Evidence map›Paper›PMID 28356222›Full record

ArticleEBioMedicine2017

Neutrophil to Lymphocyte Ratio is Associated With Outcome During Ipilimumab Treatment.

Michael R Cassidy, Rachel E Wolchok, Junting Zheng, Katherine S Panageas, Jedd D Wolchok, Daniel Coit, Michael A Postow, Charlotte Ariyan

Open access · goldAbstract read
In one paragraph

Article in EBioMedicine, 2017. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 58 papers, 6 of them syntheses that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
58citing papers in PubMed, 6 pooled it
5.9field-weighted citation impact, top 3% 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

58 citing papers in PubMed, 6 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 99 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Pooled it
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  6. Pooled it
  7. Trial
  8. Article
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  12. Overview on biomarkers for immune oncology drugs.Exploration of targeted anti-tumor therapy · 2025
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  19. Article
  20. Prognostic value of blood cell count-derived ratios in BRAF-mutated metastatic melanoma.Biomedical papers of the Medical Faculty of the University Palacky, Olomouc, Czechoslovakia · 2022
    Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

8 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.

Michael R CassidyDepartment of Surgery, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, NY, United States. Electronic address: cassidym@mskcc.org.
Rachel E WolchokDepartment of Surgery, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, NY, United States.
Junting ZhengDepartment of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, NY, United States.
Katherine S PanageasDepartment of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, NY, United States.
Jedd D WolchokDepartment of Medicine, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, NY, United States; Weill Cornell Medical College, New York, NY, United States.
Daniel CoitDepartment of Surgery, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, NY, United States; Weill Cornell Medical College, New York, NY, United States.
Michael A PostowDepartment of Medicine, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, NY, United States; Weill Cornell Medical College, New York, NY, United States.
Charlotte AriyanDepartment of Surgery, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, NY, United States; Weill Cornell Medical College, New York, NY, United States.
Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center · US

Funding

X-RAY CRYSTALLOGRAPHYP30CA008748 · NCI · SLOAN-KETTERING INSTITUTE FOR CANCER RES · PI Nicholas D Socci · 1985 to 2026
$347.4M
NCI NIH HHS P30 CA008748
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundIpilimumab (IPI) and BRAF inhibitors (BRAFi) improve survival in melanoma, but not all patients will benefit and toxicity can be significant. Pretreatment neutrophil to lymphocyte ratio (NLR) has been associated with outcome in IPI-treated patients, but has not been studied during treatment or in BRAFi-treated patients.

methodsUsing a prospectively maintained database, patients with unresectable stage III or IV melanoma treated with IPI or a BRAFi (vemurafenib or dabrafenib as monotherapy) from 2006 to 2011 were identified. NLR was calculated before treatment and at 3-week intervals after treatment initiation until 9weeks. Baseline NLR was tested for association with overall survival (OS), progression free survival (PFS), and clinical response to treatment. On-treatment NLRs were tested for association with the same outcomes using landmark survival analyses and time-dependent Cox regression models. The association of relative change of NLR from baseline with outcomes was also examined. A multivariate model tested the association of NLR and OS/PFS with additional clinical factors.

resultsThere were 197 IPI patients and 65 BRAFi patients. In multivariable analysis adjusting for M stage, and disease type (in OS)/gender (in PFS), an NLR value of 5 or above at every timepoint was associated with worse OS (HR 2.03-3.37, p<0.001), PFS (HR 1.81-2.51, p<0.001), and response to therapy (OR 3.92-9.18, p<0.007), in the IPI cohort. In addition, a >30% increase in NLR above baseline at any timepoint was associated with a worse OS and PFS (HR 1.81 and 1.66, p<0.004). In BRAFi patients, NLR was not consistently associated with outcomes.

conclusionsA high NLR, whether measured prior to or during treatment with IPI, is associated with worse OS, PFS, and clinical response in patients with advanced melanoma. An increasing NLR from baseline during treatment was correlated with worse OS and PFS in IPI-treated patients. In comparison, as NLR was not associated with outcomes in BRAFi patients, NLR may have a uniquely predictive value in patients treated with immunotherapy.

Indexed as

AgedAntineoplastic Agents, ImmunologicalDisease-Free SurvivalDrug Administration ScheduleFemaleHumansImidazolesIpilimumabLymphocytesMaleMelanomaMiddle AgedMultivariate AnalysisNeoplasm StagingNeutrophilsOximesAntineoplastic Agents, ImmunologicaldabrafenibImidazolesIpilimumabOximesProtein Kinase InhibitorsProto-Oncogene Proteins B-rafBRAF inhibitorsImmunotherapyMelanomaNeutrophil to lymphocyte ratioNLR

Identifiers

PMID28356222
PMCPMC5405176
OpenAlexW2597476871

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.