Introduction/background: The importance of nutritional status before oncologic surgery has been demonstrated in several solid malignancies. Testicular cancer primarily effects young men, and therefore clinicians may not consider sarcopenia as a factor in this population. We therefore sought to determine the impact of decreased muscle mass, measured by psoas muscle diameter, on outcomes in patients undergoing post-chemotherapy retroperitoneal lymphadenectomy (PC-RPLND) for metastatic germ cell tumors (mGCTs).
Materials and methods: Records of all patients undergoing PC-RPLND for mGCTs at our institution were reviewed. Muscle mass was assessed by measuring cross-sectional area of the psoas muscle on pre-chemotherapy and pre-operative computerized tomography. Psoas Index (PSI) was calculated by adjusting total psoas area for patient height (cm2/m2). Univariate and multivariate analysis was performed to assess the predictive value of sarcopenia for morbidity and mortality following PC-RPLND.
Results: From 2014-2019, 95 patients underwent PC-RPLND, of whom 64 patients had both pre-chemo and pre-operative cross-sectional imaging. Prior to chemotherapy, mean PSI was 7.36 cm2/m2, which decreased to 7.06 cm2/m2 (P = .041) following chemotherapy. Patients with Stage III disease had a lower mean PSI than patients with Stage I disease (6.84 cm2/m2 vs 7.46 cm2/m2, P = .047). Patients who suffered post-operative complications had a lower mean PSI (6.39 cm2/m2 vs 7.37 cm2/m2, P = .020).
Conclusion: Decreased muscle mass was predictive of morbidity in patients undergoing PC-RPLND. Patients with higher disease burden had lower pre-operative muscle mass. Further assessment of pre-operative nutritional status in this population may reduce morbidity following PC-RPLND.
Keywords: Germ cell tumors; Lymphadenectomy, Nutrition, Physical deconditioning, Psoas index.
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