The positive predictive value of low-density lipoprotein for recurrence-free survival in ovarian cancer.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the prognostic impact of preoperative plasma lipid profile, glucose, and body mass index in patients with ovarian cancer.

METHODS: A retrospective study was performed among women with ovarian cancer who underwent surgical resection between January 1, 2001, and December 1, 2015, at the First Affiliated Hospital of Wenzhou Medical University, China. Data were evaluated using Cox regression analyses, Kaplan-Meier survival analysis and landmark survival analysis.

RESULTS: There were 267 women included in the study. Multivariate Cox regression analysis showed that increased levels of low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL) were associated with a favorable recurrence-free survival (RFS) of ovarian cancer (hazard ratio [HR] 0.18, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.07-0.51). Further Kaplan-Meier survival analysis demonstrated that the patients with high levels of LDL (≥3.07 mmol/L) had better RFS compared with the patients with low levels of LDL. Moreover, landmark survival analysis indicated that a higher LDL level predicted improved 5-year RFS (P=0.026) but not 0.5-year RFS (P=0.913) of ovarian cancer.

CONCLUSION: Elevated preoperative LDL was independently associated with an improved 5-year RFS in women with ovarian cancer, thus the utility of LDL could help to predict the recurrence risk for patients with ovarian cancer.