Prognostic significance of thrombocytosis in metastatic colorectal cancer

Objective: Thrombocytosis was frequently observed in patients with malignancies and was associated with reduced overall survival and poor prognosis.The aim of this study was to evaluate the prognostic impact of thrombocytosis on patient survival up to potential progression to metastatic colorectal cancer (CRC), and to analyze the association between thrombocytosis and overall survival in patients with unresected metastases.Subjects and Methods: This retrospective study was performed at University Hospital Centre Osijek and included patients diagnosed with metastatic CRC.Participants' five-year survival was tracked.Statistical analyses included the test, Wilcoxon test for repeated measures, Kaplan-Meier survival analysis, and Cox proportional hazards regression using the Forward method.Analyses were performed in MedCalc software (v18.6.0), with significance defined as P<0.05.Results: A total of 179 patients with metastatic CRC were included in the study.The results showed a statistically significant impact of thrombocytosis on overall survival (P=0.002) and a poorer prognosis, whereas its impact on time to progression to metastatic disease was not statistically significant. Conclusion:In this study, thrombocytosis was associated with prognosis in patients with metastatic CRC, indicating that elevated platelet counts may help identify patients at higher risk.