Abstract
Purpose: This study aimed to develop an effective nomogram for predicting survival in surgically treated non-small cell lung cancer patients. Methods: We retrospectively evaluated 856 NSCLC in this study. Cox regression analyses were performed to identify significant prognostic factors for developing a nomogram to predict overall survival (OS). The discriminative ability was assessed with the concordance index (C-index). Results: On multivariate analysis of the 856 cohort, independent factors for survival were CRP, fibrinogen, tumor status, nodal status, distant metastasis and clinical stage, which were entered into the nomogram. The C-index of the established nomogram 0.720 (95% CI: 0.671-0.769) was higher than that of the seventh edition TNM staging system 0.689 (95% CI: 0.668-0.709) for predicting OS (P < 0.05). Compared with patients with low CRP levels (< 8.6 g/L) and low fibrinogen levels (< 3.7 g/L), patients with high CRP and fibrinogen levels had shorter OS. Subgroup analyses revealed that the nomogram was a favorable prognostic parameter in stage I-IV NSCLC (P < 0.05). Conclusion: A nomogram integrating CRP and fibrinogen, which could be convenient and feasible to obtain from the serum preoperatively, may assist in risk stratification for individual patient with resected NSCLC.