The Predictive Value of Peripheral Blood CD4+/CD8+ Ratio and NLR for Short-term Efficacy of Neoadjuvant Chemotherapy Combined with Immunotherapy in Locally Advanced Esophageal Cancer

Abstract The neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) and peripheral blood lymphocyte subpopulations are indicators that can reflect the immune status and the degree of chronic inflammation in the human body. This study aims to investigate the predictive value of the peripheral blood CD4+/CD8+ ratio and NLR in assessing the short-term efficacy of neoadjuvant chemotherapy combined with immunotherapy in patients with locally advanced esophageal cancer.In this research, we compared the differences in lymphocyte subpopulations and NLR between patients achieving pathological complete response (pCR) and those who did not, as well as between those with radiographic remission (CR/PR) and those without (PD/SD) prior to treatment. The analysis revealed that patients with a high CD4+/CD8+ ratio and a low NLR were more likely to achieve pCR (P < 0.05). However, these differences were not statistically significant when considering radiographic response (P > 0.05).These findings suggest that these biomarkers could be useful in predicting the effectiveness of the treatment in esophageal cancer patients, facilitating more precise and personalized therapeutic strategies.