The relationship between RDW and clinical outcomes in patients with pancreatic cancer – single centre experience

Objective: The prognostic importance of red cell distribution width (RDW) has been noted in various diseases, however, its clinical signifi cance in patients with pancreatic cancer is unknown. In this retrospective study, we aimed to reveal its prognostic value. Patients and methods: Patients diagnosed with pancreatic adenocarcinoma from Dec 14, 2017, until Dec 10, 2021, in Clinical Hospital Osijek, were evaluated retrospectively in terms of RDW and its clinical signifi cance on the outcome of the disease. Results: There were 81 patients, who were divided into normal RDW and high RDW groups. The median follow-up was 61 months. The median duration of fi rst-line treatment was 3 months (95% CI 2-8) and the median duration of secondline treatment was 3 months (95% CI 3-6). The median overall survival was 11 months (95% CI 5-18). Multivariate regression analysis (Stepwise method) along with the adjustment of disease stage shows that higher levels of RDW increase the probability of shorter overall survival (HR=1,13). Conclusion: There is a paucity of the literature on the prognostic importance of RDW on clinical outcomes in patients with pancreatic cancer. Our study with bivariate-regression analysis (COX) shows that a signifi cant predictor of shorter overall survival is higher level of RDW (HR=1,16)