b'u From Page 63Tobetterunderstandthe relationshipsamongbody phenotype,tumorgene expressionandsurvivalin patientswithccRCC,the researchersturnedtothe CancerImagingArchive andTheCancerGenome Atlas,anationaldatabase of patient CT scans, demo-graphicinformation,tumor geneexpressiondataand disease-specific data.With data from 217 ccRCC patients,theyassessedthe associationbetweenskel-etalmusclemass(SKM), visceral adipose mass (VAT) andsubcutaneousadiposeSource: Kays JK, Koniaris LG, Cooper CA, Pili R, Jiang G, Liu Y, Zimmers TA. The Combination of Low Skeletal Muscle Mass and High mass(SCAT)andover- Tumor Interleukin-6 Associates with Decreased Survival in Clear Cell Renal Cell Carcinoma. Cancers (Basel). 2020 Jun 17;12(6):1605. doi: 10.3390/cancers12061605. PMID: 32560494; PMCID: PMC7352265.allsurvivalbyunivariate andmultivariateanalysis. Patients were divided into quartiles for each tissue byLowskeletalmuscleandvisceralandsubcu-sex. Male and female quartiles were analyzed indi- taneousadiposemasseshaveaclearandsignifi-vidually and combined to evaluate for differences incant association with decreased overall survival in overall survival. Body composition and overall sur- patients with clear cell renal carcinoma, the authors vival were compared with tumor gene expression ofwrote in the journal Cancers. These findings sup-21 cachexia-associated cytokines. 1 port previous studies, agreeing that cachexia is a major cause of mortality in cancer, adding ccRCC Key Findings to the list of malignancies in which this associationThe median overall survival for all patientshas been made.was 75.2 months. There was no sex-specificThe studys results demonstrate, for the first time, difference in overall survival, which was 75.6that the combination of low muscle mass and high months for males and 64.6 months for females. tumor IL-6 expression is an especially concerningPatients in the lowest SKM quartile hadcombination that predicts early death in patients with significantly shorter overall survival versusccRCC, according to the authors.the top three SKM quartiles. Patients who fellUltimately, once the appropriate tools are avail-into the lowest quartiles for VAT and SCATable, including automated body composition analy-also demonstrated significantly shorter overallsisandreportingoftumortranscriptomics,these survival.factorscouldbeconsideredwhendesigningaSeveral tumor cytokines correlated withpatient care plan and counseling ccRCC patients on mortality, most strongly IL-6, the studyprognoses.found. High IL-6 expression was associated1Kays JK, Koniaris LG, Cooper CA, Pili R, Jiang G, Liu Y, Zimmers with significantly decreased overall survivalTA. The Combination of Low Skeletal Muscle Mass and High Tu-compared to high IL-6. The combination of lowmor Interleukin-6 Associates with Decreased Survival in Clear Cell SKM/high IL-6 was associated with significantlyRenal Cell Carcinoma. Cancers (Basel). 2020 Jun 17;12(6):1605. doi: 10.3390/cancers12061605. PMID: 32560494; PMCID: lower overall survival compared to high SKM/ PMC7352265.low IL-6 expression 70'