Validity of the PG-SGA and PG-SGA SF Against GLIM Criteria to Identify Malnutrition in Cancer Outpatients

Rationale: In cancer centres, a valid malnutrition assessment tool is important for early identification and nutrition intervention. The aim of this study was to identify malnutrition prevalence in cancer outpatients and test the validity of the Patient-Generated Subjective Global Assessment (PG-SGA) and Short Form (PG-SGA SF) against the criteria by the Global Leadership Initiative on Malnutrition (GLIM). Methods: In a 2-week cross-sectional study in adult cancer outpatients receiving intravenous treatment, we assessed: 1) PG-SGA SF (cut off score >6); and 2) PG-SGA against GLIM criteria (6-month weight loss>5%, BMI<age-specific reference, handgrip strength <25th percentile of age- and gender specific normative values-1). Sensitivity of >80% and specificity of >60% were deemed acceptable. Results: Out of 275 outpatients, 246 consented to participate in the study (74.0% females, age 61.9+13.1). The prevalence of moderate or severe malnutrition was 21.5% via PG-SGA and 20% via GLIM+handgrip strength. Compared to GLIM+handgrip strength, the 1) PG-SGA SF had a sensitivity of 68.8%, specificity of 82.5% and kappa=0.15; and 2) PG-SGA had a sensitivity of 44.9%, specificity of 89.3% and kappa=0.37. Conclusions: Approximately 1 in 5 outpatients with cancer were malnourished. PG-SGA and PG-SGA SF were not sensitive or specific enough to identify malnutrition and had low agreement with GLIM. References: 1 Dodds RM et al. Grip strength across the life course: normative data from twelve British studies. PLoS One. 2014 Dec 4;9(12):e113637. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0113637. eCollection 2014. PubMed PMID: 25474696; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC4256164. Disclosure of Interest: None Declared Keywords: Cancer outpatients, Malnutrition diagnosis