Inflammatory marker scores are used by hospital specialists as surrogate markers of the catabolic drive in cancer cachexia.4 Raised scores correlate with the extent of weight loss (WL), predict symptom burden, tumour progression and survival across multiple cancer types.5 Commonly reported scores are the modified Glasgow prognostic score (mGPS), that combines low albumin and raised C-reactive protein (CRP), the neutrophil–lymphocyte score (NLS) and the platelet–lymphocyte score (PLS). This evidence concerns the gene ALB and cancer.