Table 2.
Prognostic factors for survival. All baseline variables shown in Table 1 were analyzed (univariate, log-rank test). Those with P value <0.1 were carried forward to multivariate Cox regression analysis and are shown here.
| Characteristic | Median survival (months) | P value | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Univariate1 | Multivariate | ||
| Karnofsky PS | |||
| 90–100 | 18.3 | 0.0001 | 0.0001 |
| 70–80 | 9.4 | ||
| ≤60 | 2.1 | ||
| Known brain metastases | |||
| No | 9.7 | 0.008 | n.s. |
| Yes | 3.6 | ||
| Known liver metastases | |||
| No | 9.7 | 0.037 | 0.039 |
| Yes | 2.8 | ||
| Pleural effusion | |||
| No | 9.4 | 0.007 | 0.039 |
| Yes | 1.3 | ||
| Number of metastatic sites | |||
| Max. 2 | 9.7 | 0.054 | n.s. |
| 3 or more | 2.8 | ||
| Progressive disease outside RT target volume | |||
| No | 12.6 | 0.033 | n.s. |
| Yes | 5.5 | ||
| Use of opioid analgetics | |||
| No | 24.5 | 0.02 | n.s. |
| Yes | 5.2 | ||
| Use of steroids | |||
| No | 12.2 | 0.002 | 0.015 |
| Yes | 3.6 | ||
| Serum albumin | |||
| Low | 9.7 | 0.001 | n.s. |
| Normal | 2.8 | ||
| Serum alkaline phosphatase | |||
| Normal | 15.1 | 0.027 | n.s. |
| Elevated | 4.1 | ||
| Serum creatinine | |||
| Low | 1.6 | 0.0001 | n.s. |
| Normal | 9.7 | ||
| Elevated | 15.1 | ||
| Serum C-reactive protein | |||
| Normal | 18.3 | 0.0001 | n.s. |
| Elevated but less than 30 mg/L | 12.6 | ||
| Elevated 30–60 mg/L | 5.3 | ||
| Elevated >60 mg/L | 2.6 | ||
| Thrombocyte count | |||
| Low | 12.7 | 0.038 | n.s. |
| Normal | 9.7 | ||
| High | 4.0 | ||
| Number of abnormal blood tests2 | |||
| Max. 1 | 12.7 | ||
| 2 | 5.8 | 0.008 | n.s. |
| 3 or more | 3.0 | ||
| Smoking status | |||
| Current smoker | 4.3 | 0.063 | n.s. |
| No | 9.7 | ||
| Time from first cancer diagnosis | |||
| Shorter than median (47 months) | 5.3 | 0.089 | n.s. |
| Longer than median | 9.7 | ||
RT: radiotherapy; PS: performance status.
1If more than 2 groups, P value from log-rank test pooled over all strata.
2All tests shown in Table 1 were considered.
Significance levels were not corrected for multiple tests.