Prognostic value of lymphocyte-to-monocyte ratio in ovarian cancer: A meta-analysis.

Background: Lymphocyte-to-monocyte ratio (LMR) was recently proposed as a prognostic factor of ovarian cancer. However, prognostic value of the LMR in ovarian cancer remains inconclusive. The study aimed to assess prognostic value of the LMR in ovarian cancer. Methods: Seven common databases were comprehensively searched for relevant studies. The analyses were performed for overall survival (OS), progression-free survival (PFS) and clinical parameters. The hazard ratio (HR) and 95% confidence interval (CI) were used to analyze OS and PFS. Results: A total of 2343 patients with ovarian cancer were included in this meta-analysis. The results showed that a low LMR predicted shorter OS (HR=1.81, 95% CI=1.38-2.37, P<.01) and PFS (HR=1.65, 95% CI=1.46-1.85, P<.01) when compared to a high LMR in ovarian cancer. Besides, a low LMR was significantly associated with advanced clinical stage (P<.01), earlier lymph node metastasis (P=.01), higher carbohydrate antigen-125 levels (P<.01), larger residual tumor (P<.01) and worse chemosensitivity (P<.01) when compared to a high LMR in ovarian cancer. Conclusion: Low LMR was associated with unfavorable survival in patients with ovarian cancer. LMR could serve as a prognostic biomarker of ovarian cancer.