Pretreatment HALP Score and Survival Outcomes in Patients with Metastatic Renal Cell Carcinoma Receiving First-Line Tyrosine Kinase Inhibitors: A Turkish Oncology Group Kidney Cancer Consortium (TKCC) Study
Year: 2026
Type: article
Study design: Observational Study
Abstract: Background/Objectives: The hemoglobin, albumin, lymphocyte, and platelet (HALP) score has been investigated as an immunonutritional biomarker in several solid tumors; however, data in metastatic renal cell carcinoma (mRCC) remain limited. This study aimed to evaluate the prognostic significance of the pretreatment HALP score in patients with mRCC receiving first-line tyrosine kinase inhibitor (TKI) therapy. Methods: A multicenter retrospective cohort study was conducted using data from the Turkish Oncology Group Kidney Cancer Consortium (TKCC) Database. HALP was calculated as hemoglobin (g/dL) × albumin (g/dL) × lymphocyte count (×109/L)/platelet count (×109/L). Patients were categorized into HALP-low and HALP-high groups according to the cohort median HALP value. Results: A total of 1001 patients were enrolled. The median time to treatment failure (TTF) was significantly shorter in the HALP-low group than in the HALP-high group (7.43 months [95% CI 6.4–8.5] vs. 14.26 months [95% CI 12.1–16.4], p < 0.001). The median overall survival (OS) was also significantly shorter in the HALP-low group (30.19 months [95% CI 25.2–35.1] vs. 46.06 months [95% CI 38.2–53.9], p < 0.001). In multivariable analysis, a high HALP score remained independently associated with longer TTF (HR 0.73, 95% CI 0.62–0.86; p < 0.001) and OS (HR 0.69, 95% CI 0.57–0.85; p < 0.001). Conclusions: The pretreatment HALP score was independently associated with TTF and OS in patients with mRCC treated with first-line TKI therapy. These findings support the prognostic relevance of HALP in this treatment setting and warrant further evaluation of its potential role alongside established clinical risk models.
Source: Cancers
Authors: Murat Günaltılı, Hatice Bölek, Esma Kaplan Tüzün, Sura Usta, Safa Can Efil, Aysun Fatma Akkus, Selver Işık, Caner Kapar, Serhat Sekmek, Halil Göksel Güzel, Murad Guliyev, Talha Ozudogru, Sema Sezin Göksu, Özlem Nuray Sever, Çagatay Arslan, Nuri Karadurmuş, Mehmet Ali Nahit Sendur, Deniz Tural, Mustafa Özgüroğlu, Emre Yekedüz, Yüksel Ürün
Institutions: Istanbul University-Cerrahpaşa, Istanbul University, Ankara Bilkent City Hospital, Gülhane Eğitim ve Araştırma Hastanesi, Ankara Dr. Abdurrahman Yurtaslan Oncology Training and Research Hospital, Trakya University, Marmara University, Sakarya Eğitim ve Araştırma Hastanesi, Antalya Eğitim ve Araştırma Hastanesi, Ege University, Akdeniz University, Sancaktepe Şehit Prof. Dr. İlhan Varank Eğitim ve Araştırma Hastanesi, İzmir University of Economics, Koç University, Ankara University
Language: English
Subfield: Oncology
Field: Medicine
Domain: Health Sciences
Open Access status: gold
Estimated APC paid: $3,499
OpenAlex ID: W7166741608