Association between fasting blood glucose levels at admission and overall survival of patients with pancreatic cancer

Background The associations between fasting blood glucose and staging and overall survival of patients with pancreatic cancer are still controversial. This study aimed to investigate the association between fasting blood glucose levels and overall survival (OS) of patients with pancreatic cancer and to evaluate the impact of differentiation and staging of pancreatic cancer. Methods This was a retrospective study of patients with pathologically confirmed pancreatic cancer admitted to Shengjing Hospital of China Medical University between 01/2012 and 12/2016. The outcome was the OS. The factors associated with OS were examined using univariable and multivariable Cox and logistic regression analyses. Results A total of 253 patients were included. Preoperative blood glucose levels were not significantly associated with the OS of patients with pancreatic cancer (HR = 1.04, 95%CI: 0.78-1.40, P = 0.781). Only CA199 > 1000 was independently associated with OS (HR = 1.86, 95%CI: 1.15-3.02, P = 0.012). The median survival in the normal glucose group was 20.5 months (95% confidence interval (CI): 14.2-26.9). The median survival in the high glucose group was 14.2 months (95% CI: 9.7-18.6). There was no statistically significant difference between the two groups (P = 0.573). Multivariable logistic regression analyses were performed to determine if blood glucose levels influenced the 1- and 2-year OS. No significant association was observed for 1-year (OR = 1.27, 95%CI: 0.71-2.29, P = 0.418) or 2-year (HR = 1.37, 95%CI: 0.76-2.46, P = 0.296) OS. Conclusions Fasting blood glucose levels are not associated with the OS of patients with pancreatic adenocarcinoma.