Value of percentage of highly fluorescent lymphocytic cells for rapidly assessing septicemia in tumor patients

Objective To evaluate the value of percentage of highly fluorescent lymphocytic cells (HFLC%) for rapidly assessing septicemia in tumor patients. Methods Blood samples were collected from 130 patients with tumors (60 septicemia patients and 70 non-septicemia patients) and 80 healthy controls.HFLC% was analyzed with Sysmex XE-5000, the level of C-reactive protein (CRP) measured with a commercially available turbidimetric immunoassay kit and the level of procalcitonin (PCT) determined with a semiquantitative chromato-graphic immunoassay kit.The diagnostic values of HFLC% and CRP in septicemia were evaluated with ROC analysis. Results The values of HFLC% and CRP were significantly higher in the septicemia group than those in the non-septicemia and healthy groups (0.30% (0.10%-0.70%) vs 0.10% (0-0.20%),0.10% (0-0.20%); 80.3 (28.5-129.5) vs 3.3 (1.4-41.4),1.4 (0.6-2.5) mg/L, all P<0.01).The ROCAUCs for HFLC% and CRP for a diagnosis of septicemia were 0.72 (sensitivity 71.7%, specificity 58.7%) and 0.92 (sensitivity 96.7%, specificity 82.0%).Both of them could judge septicemia better.Additionally, HFLC% was correlated with the levels of PCT and CRP (r=0.637, 0.241, both P<0.01). Conclusions HFLC% may be used as a rapid and simple auxiliary indicator in the diagnosis of septicemia in patients with tumors.And it is conducive to make an early diagnosis of septicemia and avoid unnecessary use of antibiotics. Key words: C-reactive protein; Neoplasms; Septicemia; Percentage of highly fluorescent lymphocytic cells; Procalcitonin