Malnutrition defined by Controlling Nutritional Status score was independently associated with prognosis of diffuse large B-cell lymphoma primarily on elderly patients

Hematology. 2025 Dec;30(1):2434276. doi: 10.1080/16078454.2024.2434276. Epub 2024 Dec 19.

Abstract

Objectives: Controlling Nutritional Status (CONUT) Score is an effective tool for the assessment of malnutrition and proved to be associated with survival of Diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) patients. We investigated the impact of CONUT score on specific subgroups of DLBCL patients, including age and International prognostic Index (IPI) risk groups.

Methods: Data of 287 newly diagnosed DLBCL in the Third Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University were retrospectively collected. Baseline CONUT score, clinical data and survival information were recorded.

Results: With the standard cut-off value of 4 points, 88 (30.7%) patients were clarified as malnourished. During a median follow-up of 34 months, malnourished patients exhibited significant reduction in both progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS). The 3-year PFS rates for malnourished and well-nourished patients were 51.4% and 70.9% (p = 0.001), while the 3-year OS rates were 62.4% and 84.0% (p < 0.001). Malnutrition was demonstrated an independent predictor of OS in DLBCL patients (HR 2.220, 95% CI 1.307-3.772, p = 0.003). It could effectively identify patients with inferior OS in both low/intermediate-low risk and intermediate-high/high risk IPI groups. In the group of elderly patients aged over 60 years, malnutrition was independently associated with OS (HR 2.182, 95% CI 1.178-4.040, p = 0.024), but not PFS (HR 1.709, 95% CI 1.016-2.875, p = 0.070) after adjustment using the Benjamini-Hochberg procedure. Conversely, for younger patients, malnutrition did not demonstrate an independent impact on either PFS or OS.

Conclusion: Malnutrition evaluated by CONUT score was an independent predictor for the outcome of DLBCL patients, which is exclusively caused by its effect on elderly patients.

Keywords: Controlling Nutritional Status score; Diffuse Large B-cell Lymphoma; elderly patients; malnutrition; prognosis.

MeSH terms

  • Adult
  • Age Factors
  • Aged
  • Aged, 80 and over
  • Female
  • Humans
  • Lymphoma, Large B-Cell, Diffuse* / complications
  • Lymphoma, Large B-Cell, Diffuse* / mortality
  • Male
  • Malnutrition* / diagnosis
  • Malnutrition* / etiology
  • Middle Aged
  • Nutrition Assessment
  • Nutritional Status*
  • Prognosis
  • Retrospective Studies