Correlation between early brain natriuretic peptide level and mortality in cancer patients with septic shock

BACKGROUND: This study aimed to examine the correlation between early brain natriuretic peptide (BNP) levels and mortality in cancer patients with septic shock. METHODS: A retrospective analysis of 159 cancer patients with septic shock admitted to the intensive care unit (ICU) from Dec. 2012 to Dec. 2019 was performed. BNP levels and other variables, including blood lactate (Lac), procalcitonin (PCT), white blood cell (WBC) counts, acute physiology and chronic health status system II scores (APACHE-II scores) were collected within 24 hours after ICU admission. According to 28-day mortality, patients were divided into a death group (60 cases) and a survival group (99 cases). All variables were compared by univariate analysis, and then a multiple logistic regression analysis was performed on the variables that showed significant differences. Receiver operating characteristic curve (ROC curve) analysis was used to evaluate the predictive value of BNP on mortality in cancer patients with septic shock. RESULTS: BNP, APACHE-II score, Lac, and PCT in the death group were significantly higher than those in the survival group (P<0.05). Multiple logistic regression analysis of these four variables indicated that BNP, APACHE-II score and Lac were independent risk predictors of mortality in these patients (P<0.05). The BNP level at 899.6 pg/mL predicted mortality with a sensitivity of 76.7% and a specificity of 84.7%. The area under the ROC curve was 0.86±0.03 (P<0.05) for BNP, which was significantly larger than that of the APACHE-II score (P<0.05) and Lac (P<0.05). CONCLUSIONS: BNP was an independent risk factor for mortality in cancer patients with septic shock, and had a higher predictive value than the APACHE-II score and Lac.