Predictive value of serological factors, maximal standardized uptake value and ratio of Ki67 in patients diagnosed with non‑Hodgkin's lymphoma

The present study aimed to determine the prognostic value of serological factors, positron emission tomography/computed tomography maximal standardized uptake value (SUVmax) and the immunohistochemical index ratio of Ki67 (Ki67%) for patients diagnosed with non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (NHL). A total of 120 patients with NHL who received regular chemotherapy and underwent serological, radiological and pathological examinations at Shanghai Tongji Hospital between July 2015 and March 2019 were retrospectively analyzed. Spearman's correlation analysis was preformed to describe the associations between different categories of indicators. Kaplan-Meier analysis and log-rank test were used to compare the survival of different subgroups. Receiver operating characteristic curves were generated to assess the predictive value of prominent indicators derived from Cox regression analysis. The results indicated that inflammatory cytokines were strongly associated with tumor burden indicators. The correlation between SUVmax and Ki67% was significant, and SUVmax of the biopsy site exhibited a stronger association with Ki67% (Ρ=0.529, P<0.001) compared with SUVmax of the whole body (Ρ=0.395, P=0.017). C-reactive protein (CRP), lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) and interleukin-6 could differentiate the survival status of patients with NHL, whereas no statistical significance in the estimation of overall survival (OS) was obtained for SUVmax and Ki67%. SUVmax of the biopsy site had only a limited value in the estimation of progression-free survival (PFS), whereas LDH, β2-microglobulin (β2-mg) and CRP were independent predictors of both OS and PFS with high sensitivity and specificity. Among all indicators, CRP and β2-mg could predict both survival status and complete remission of patients with NHL, whereas the prognostic value of SUVmax and Ki67% requires further study and discussion.