Concordance between body mass index and subjective global assessment in the nutritional diagnosis of adult cancer patients. Retrospective study
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.18004/anales/2026.e59012620Keywords:
Body mass index, Nutritional assessment, CancerAbstract
Introduction: Nutritional status has a direct impact on treatment tolerance, immune response, postoperative recovery, quality of life, and survival. Objective: To evaluate the agreement between body mass index (BMI) and Subjective Global Assessment (SGA) in the nutritional diagnosis of adult cancer patients attending the Clinical Nutrition Service of the National Cancer Institute, from October 2024 to April 2025. Materials and Methods: An observational, retrospective, analytical, cross-sectional study with a quantitative approach was conducted, based on the analysis of an institutional database. Results: The proportion of women was higher, accounting for 67% (n=237). The predominant age group was 40 to 59 years, representing 48.2% (n=170), with a mean age of 56.0 ± 13.9 years. A total of 51% (n=179) of patients mainly came from rural areas. Gastrointestinal tumors were the most frequent, representing 33% (n=116) of cases, followed by female genital cancer with 24% (n=86), and head and neck tumors with 13% (n=44). Regarding hemoglobin levels, 43.1% (n=50) of men were non-anemic, while 34.4% (n=40) presented mild anemia. In women, 27.4% (n=65) had moderate anemia. In terms of body mass index (BMI), patients up to 59 years of age showed 36.7% (n=77) normal weight, 21% (n=110) overweight, and 27.6% (n=58) underweight. Patients aged 60 years and older showed 46.2% (n=66) normal weight, followed by 31.5% (n=45) underweight. The Subjective Global Assessment (SGA) classified 35% (n=110) of patients as well-nourished, 34% (n=120) as moderately malnourished or suspected malnutrition, and 31% (n=108) as severely malnourished. In men, an odds ratio (OR) of 1.91 (95% CI: 0.86–4.22; p=0.11) was observed, suggesting a higher likelihood of malnutrition in the presence of anemia according to the evaluated methods; however, this association was not statistically significant. In women, the OR was 1.34 (95% CI: 0.76–2.35; p=0.31), indicating a lower magnitude of association, also without statistical significance. Conclusion: Poor agreement was observed between body mass index and Subjective Global Assessment for the classification of nutritional status (Kappa = 0.09).
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