Data Sheet 1_Pretreatment body mass index as a prognostic factor for clinical course and survival in primary surgically treated oral squamous cell carcinoma – a retrospective study.pdf

Five-year OS ranged from 31.4% in patients classified as underweight to 82.0% in patients with obesity. Higher BMI was associated with lower mortality (HR per 1 kg/m² 0.95, 95% CI 0.91–0.99; p = 0.013), and obesity was associated with improved OS compared with normal weight (HR 0.50, 95% CI 0.26–0.96; p = 0.037). BMI was not significantly associated with RFS after adjustment (HR per 1 kg/m² 0.97, 95% CI 0.93–1.00; p = 0.080).

Higher BMI was associated with fewer perioperative RBC transfusions (any transfusion: OR 0.91, 95% CI 0.84–0.98; p = 0.012; number of units: OR 0.89, 95% CI 0.82–0.95; p = 0.001). BMI was not independently associated with PEG placement or hospital length of stay; ICU findings depended on BMI modeling.</p>Discussion<p>Higher pretreatment BMI was associated with better OS and lower perioperative RBC transfusion requirements, whereas associations with RFS and most other perioperative outcomes were not significant after adjustment.

Given the retrospective design and limitations of BMI as a body-composition marker, these findings should be interpreted cautiously. Pretreatment BMI may help identify low-BMI patients warranting early supportive-care assessment.</p>