Effect of blood type on survival of Chinese patients with esophageal squamous cell carcinoma

BACKGROUND The aim of this study was to evaluate the prognostic value of ABO blood group in Chinese patients with esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) after esophagectomy. METHODS This study was a retrospective review of the records of 548 patients with ESCC who received cytoreductive surgery between October 2002 and March 2007. The prognostic impact of ABO blood group on overall survival (OS) was analyzed. RESULTS The median follow-up time was 37 months, and the 5-year OS was 43.3%. The overall 5-year OS was 41.2%, 49.7%, 44.0%, and 29.8% for the A, B, O, and AB groups, respectively (P=0.038). Among patients with negative lymph nodes (LNs), the 5-year OS was 59.0%, 68.2%, 57.9%, and 28.6% for the A, B, O, and AB groups, respectively (P<0.001), but blood type had no value in predicting the OS of patients with positive LNs (P=0.524). In multivariate Cox regression analysis of all patients, ABO blood group was not an independent prognostic factor of OS. However, in patients with negative LNs, blood type was an independent prognostic factor of OS, and the higher risk of death for patients of type AB versus non-AB significant in multivariate analyses (hazard ratio [HR], 2.576; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.349-4.919; P=0.004). CONCLUSION ABO blood group is associated with survival in Chinese patients with ESCC. Patients with blood type AB had a significantly worse OS than patients with non-AB type, especially in patients with negative LNs.