SynthesisBMC cancer2025
Prognostic nutritional index and the survival of patients with hepatocellular carcinoma on immune checkpoint inhibitors: a meta-analysis.
Synthesis in BMC cancer, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 2 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
2 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.
- The impact of comorbid type 2 diabetes on survival outcomes in patients with solid tumors treated with immune checkpoint inhibitors: a meta-analysis focusing on lung cancer.Frontiers in endocrinology · 2026Pooled it
- Post-Treatment Prognostic Nutritional Index Outperforms Baseline Index as an Independent Prognostic Biomarker in Advanced Hepatocellular Carcinoma Receiving Immune-Based Systemic Therapy.Journal of hepatocellular carcinoma · 2026Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
6 authors.
Funding
Abstract
backgroundThe prognostic nutritional index (PNI), reflecting both nutritional and immune status, may be associated with survival in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) patients treated with immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs). However, findings across individual studies remain inconsistent. This meta-analysis aimed to assess the association between pretreatment PNI and survival outcomes in HCC patients receiving ICIs.
methodsA systematic search of PubMed, Embase, and Web of Science was conducted from inception to May 31, 2025. Cohort studies reporting hazard ratios (HRs) for overall survival (OS) and/or progression-free survival (PFS) by baseline PNI levels in HCC patients on ICIs were included. Pooled HRs with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were calculated using random-effects models to account for the influence of heterogeneity.
resultsEleven retrospective cohort studies with 2,944 patients were included. A low PNI was significantly associated with poorer OS (HR: 1.78, 95% CI: 1.40 to 2.26, p < 0.001; I² = 56%) and PFS (HR: 1.46, 95% CI: 1.22 to 1.74, p < 0.001; I² = 43%). Subgroup analyses showed consistent associations across mean age, Barcelona Clinic Liver Cancer stage C proportion, PNI cutoff, follow-up duration, and study quality scores, with all p-values for subgroup differences > 0.05. Sensitivity analyses by excluding one study at a time did not significantly affect the results, which also confirmed the stability of findings.
conclusionsLow pretreatment PNI was associated with poorer OS and PFS in HCC patients receiving ICIs. These findings suggest that PNI may be a promising and practical prognostic marker in this setting. However, prospective studies are needed to validate its utility before it can be considered an established biomarker.
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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the Socratic graph.