Peripheral blood inflammation indexes correlate with advanced stages in cutaneous melanoma: A single-center retrospective study

Inflammation, well-known as one of the hallmarks of cancer, has been demonstrated to have a key role in the incidence and growth of different tumors. However, its role as a prognostic factor for melanoma has not yet been clarified. Our study aimed to evaluate the correlation of neutrophil to lymphocyte ratio (NLR), platelet to monocyte ratio (PMR), systemic inflammation index (SII), and aggregate index of systemic inflammation (AISI) with clinical stages of disease, to define whether higher values of these markers correlate with a more aggressive disease. We retrospectively analyzed NLR, PMR, SII, and AISI in a total of 129 newly diagnosed melanoma patients. All values were calculated using the complete blood count data. Higher NLR was associated with advanced stages ( P  < 0.001). Mean NLR among patients with early stage disease (IB and IIA) was 2.01, while the mean NLR for patients with advanced stage disease (from stage IIB to IV) was 3.22. Mean PMR among patients with early stage disease (IB and IIA) was 520, while the mean PMR for patients with advanced stage disease was 479 ( P  = 0.049). Mean AISI in the early stage was 247 and 482 in advanced stages ( P  < 0.001). Mean SII was 480 in the early stage and 747 in advanced stages ( P  = 0.004). Our data confirmed the association between NLR and newly reported the association of PMR, AISI, and SII with high-risk and aggressive melanoma. Further investigations are required to define a meaningful prognostic system for patients with advanced melanoma. This could help classify patients with advanced stages of disease, demanding a short follow-up.