Metabonomics for Distinguishing Between Benign and Malignant Pleural Effusion and Assessing the Prognosis of Lung Cancer Patients With Malignant Pleural Effusion

Pleural effusion (PE) is a common yet challenging problem in clinical settings. PE is a symptom caused by over 50 diseases and is typically classified as either malignant pleural effusion (MPE) or benign pleural effusion (BPE). MPE affects a significant number of individuals, with an estimated annual incidence of 500-700 cases per million population. Metastatic cancer is the leading cause of MPE, and lung cancer accounts for approximately 37.5% of cases. The management of MPE is a major clinical challenge due to its association with a typically poor prognosis, with a median survival of only 3 to 12 months. However, predicting survival in MPE patients can be difficult due to significant heterogeneity in underlying malignancy and patient performance status. Therefore, accurate prognostication remains a significant challenge in the management of MPE.

Metabonomics is an analytical technique for detecting metabolites in biological samples and has been widely used in disease diagnosis and prognosis evaluation in recent years. The aim of this study is to use Metabonomics technology to compare and analyze the differences in metabolites between benign and malignant pleural effusion, and to explore its application in the prognosis evaluation of lung cancer patients with malignant pleural effusion.