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Is BMI a reliable prognostic parameter in metastatic prostate cancer patients?

Prostate Cancer and Prostatic Diseases volume 25, page 797 (2022)Cite this article

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In their recently published paper, Martini et al. reported that patients with metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer (mCRPC), defined as obese by body mass index (BMI), have better cancer-specific and overall survival when compared to their overweight and normal weight counterpart [1].

Obesity is a well-established risk factor for cardiovascular disease and mortality in an adult population. However the impact of obesity as measured by BMI differs when comparing young and elderly individuals [2]. In the latter population, which includes most patients with prostate cancer, several studies have shown that overweight and obesity are apparently associated with a decreased mortality risk and this phenomenon is known as obesity paradox. The paper by Martini et al. confirmed this finding also in metastatic prostate cancer patients. A previous large meta-analysis, including individuals aged 65 and older, however, showed that the relationship between BMI and mortality is not linear but U-shaped. The lowest risk was found in subjects with a BMI between 24 and 30 kg/m2, while mortality risk increased in subjects with lower BMI as well as in those with BMI exceeding 33 kg/m2 [3]. This U-shaped relationship between BMI and mortality should be also explored in the patient series included in the Martini et al. paper. For instance, it would be of interest to analyze whether the correlation with overall survival is still linear for extremely high BMI scores such as in severe obesity.

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References

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Medical Oncology Unit, Department of Medical and Surgical Specialties, Radiological Sciences, and Public Health, University of Brescia, ASST Spedali Civili di Brescia, Brescia, Italy

    Irene Caramella, Alberto Dalla Volta, Francesca Valcamonico, Salvatore Grisanti & Alfredo Berruti

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  1. Irene Caramella
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  2. Alberto Dalla Volta
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  3. Francesca Valcamonico
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  4. Salvatore Grisanti
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  5. Alfredo Berruti
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Contributions

IC: conceptualization, writing-original draft, writing-review and editing. ADV: conceptualization, writing-review and editing. FV: writing-review and editing. SG: writing-review and editing. AB: supervision, conceptualization, writing-review and editing.

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Correspondence to Alberto Dalla Volta.

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Caramella, I., Dalla Volta, A., Valcamonico, F. et al. Is BMI a reliable prognostic parameter in metastatic prostate cancer patients?. Prostate Cancer Prostatic Dis 25, 797 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41391-021-00474-6

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