Evidence mapPaperPMID 42421369Full record

ReviewCurrent opinion in supportive and palliative care2026

Identifying markers of cachexia and nutritional deficit on radical radiotherapy outcomes in lung and head and neck cancer.

T K Liu, D Noble, M Stares, I Phillips

Abstract readReview
In one paragraph

Review in Current opinion in supportive and palliative care, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

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0citing papers in PubMed
field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

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2 · The registry

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3 · Its place in the literature

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4 · The record

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5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

4 authors.

T K LiuUniversity of Edinburgh Medical School, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, Scotland.ORCID 0009-0001-4346-6092
D NobleEdinburgh Cancer Centre, Western General Hospital, Edinburgh, Scotland.
M StaresEdinburgh Cancer Centre, Western General Hospital, Edinburgh, Scotland.
I PhillipsEdinburgh Cancer Centre, Western General Hospital, Edinburgh, Scotland.ORCID 0009-0000-9100-4012

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

purpose of reviewCancer cachexia is a multifactorial syndrome characterised by weight loss, muscle wasting, malnutrition, and systemic inflammation. Although well-recognised in advanced cancer, its significance in patients receiving radical radiotherapy for potentially curable malignancies is less well understood. This review examines the impact of cachexia-related biomarkers in patients undergoing radical radiotherapy for lung or head and neck cancers. RECENT

findingsMany studies evaluating cachexia-related phenotypes do not explicitly use the term 'cachexia'. Therefore, this review focuses on four key domains of cachexia: weight loss, malnutrition, sarcopenia, and systemic inflammation. Across both tumour types, these biomarkers were frequently associated with poorer survival, increased treatment toxicity, and reduced treatment tolerance in patients receiving radical radiotherapy with curative intent for lung or head and neck cancers. However, the literature is dominated by retrospective studies employing heterogeneous definitions in poorly defined patient groups. SUMMARY: Cachexia-related biomarkers provide important prognostic information in patients receiving radical radiotherapy for lung cancer and head and neck cancer. Routine assessment of weight loss, nutritional status, body composition, and systemic inflammation may improve risk stratification and support personalised treatment decisions. Future prospective studies should incorporate standardised cachexia assessments to validate their clinical utility and evaluate emerging nutritional, prehabilitation, and anti-cachexia interventions.

Indexed as

CachexiaHead and Neck NeoplasmsLung NeoplasmsMalnutritionBiomarkersBody CompositionHumansInflammationNutritional StatusPrognosisSarcopeniaWeight LossBiomarkerscancer cachexiahead and neck cancerlung cancerradiotherapysystemic inflammation

Identifiers

PMID42421369
PMCPMC13405630

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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.