Correlation of Body Mass Index with Oncologic Outcomes in Colorectal Cancer Patients: A Large Population-Based Study

Simple Summary Obesity is related to the rising risk of colorectal cancer (CRC). However, the impact of body mass index (BMI) on the oncologic prognosis of CRC patients remains unknown. Conflicting results regarding the relationship between BMI and CRC prognosis have been reported. Therefore, we conducted a nationwide retrospective study that examined the correlation of BMI at diagnosis with overall survival (OS), disease-free survival (DFS), and CRC-specific survival rates in CRC patients. We noted that an underweight status at diagnosis was related to higher mortality and recurrence rates, a decreased rate of OS, and a decreased CRC-specific survival rate compared with those for the normal weight patients. In contrast, overweight and class I or II obese patients had better OS, CRC-specific survival, and DFS rates than those in the normal weight category. Our findings suggest that weight loss in the immediate diagnosis period is unwarranted. It has been acknowledged that excess body weight increases the risk of colorectal cancer (CRC); however, there is little evidence on the impact of body mass index (BMI) on CRC patients' long-term oncologic results in Asian populations. We studied the influence of BMI on overall survival (OS), disease-free survival (DFS), and CRC-specific survival rates in CRC patients from the administrative claims datasets of Taiwan using the Kaplan-Meier survival curves and the log-rank test to estimate the statistical differences among BMI groups. Underweight patients (<18.50 kg/m(2)) presented higher mortality (56.40%) and recurrence (5.34%) rates. Besides this, they had worse OS (aHR:1.61; 95% CI: 1.53-1.70; p-value: < 0.0001) and CRC-specific survival (aHR:1.52; 95% CI: 1.43-1.62; p-value: < 0.0001) rates compared with those of normal weight patients (18.50-24.99 kg/m(2)). On the contrary, CRC patients belonging to the overweight (25.00-29.99 kg/m(2)), class I obesity (30.00-34.99 kg/m(2)), and class II obesity (>= 35.00 kg/m(2)) categories had better OS, DFS, and CRC-specific survival rates in the analysis than the patients in the normal weight category. Overweight patients consistently had the lowest mortality rate after a CRC diagnosis. The associations with being underweight may reflect a reverse causation. CRC patients should maintain a long-term healthy body weight.

Automated summary

The study indicates a correlation between BMI and oncologic prognosis in colorectal cancer patients. Underweight patients have higher mortality and recurrence rates, while overweight and obese patients tend to have better survival rates compared to those with normal weight.