Decreased plasma riboflavin is associated with poor prognosis, invasion, and metastasis in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma

Background Riboflavin deficiency confers a predisposition for esophageal cancer. The role of plasma riboflavin levels in development and prognosis of individuals with digestive tract inflammation and ulcer (DTIU), digestive tract polyps (DTPs), and ESCC is not well understood. Methods We performed a cross-sectional study, including 177 DTIU, 80 DTP, and 324 ESCC cases, to measure the plasma riboflavin levels among the three populations. Correlation between plasma riboflavin levels (categorized as ≥31.8, 6.5–31.8 and ≤6.5 nmol/L groups) and clinical characteristics, as well as survival of ESCC patients (556 cases) was analyzed. Results There was no difference in plasma riboflavin levels between DTIU, DTP, and ESCC cases ( P > 0.05). Plasma riboflavin levels were inversely correlated with invasive depth (correlation coefficient = −0.09, P = 0.026) and lymph node metastasis (correlation coefficient = −0.11, P = 0.010) of ESCC, and ESCC patients with low riboflavin levels had poor recurrence-free survival ( P = 0.035) and overall survival ( P = 0.003). Decreased riboflavin was a prognostic factor for poor overall survival (HR = 1.91, 95% CI = 1.19–3.07, P = 0.007). Conclusions Plasma riboflavin levels in DTIU, DTP, and ESCC patients are similar. Plasma riboflavin levels are associated with the development and prognosis of ESCC.