Predicting survival after irradiation of metastases from pancreatic cancer

Background/Aim: Patients with metastases from pancreas cancer benefit from individualized care, including radiotherapy for symptom control. To administer the optimal radiation therapy, it is important to understand a patient's prognosis. Patients and Methods: Seven variables were analyzed regarding their relationship with survival: age, gender, Karnofsky performance score (KPS), number of metastatic sites, interval from diagnosis of pancreatic cancer to irradiation of metastases, type of irradiated metastasis, and radiation dose. Results: On univariate analysis, survival was positively associated with age ≤67 years (p=0.045), KPS >70 (p<0.001), and involvement of only one metastatic site (p=0.013). A longer interval between diagnosis and irradiation of metastases showed a trend for better survival (p=0.077). On multivariate analysis, age [risk ratio (RR)=4.29; p=0.004], KPS (RR=1.95; p=0.020), number of metastatic sites (RR=2.20; p=0.009) and interval to irradiation (RR=4.41; p=0.005) achieved significance. Conclusion: The present study identified four independent predictors of survival in patients with pancreatic cancer irradiated for metastasis and thus contributes to treatment optimization.