Prognostic and predictive role of DNA mismatch repair status in stage II-III colorectal cancer: A systematic review and meta-analysis

DNA mismatch repair (MMR) status was considered to be a potential prognostic factor for colorectal cancer (CRC) but with conflicting reports, and varied in terms of TNM stages. Its relationship with prognosis in stage II-III CRC had not yet been systematically established. Therefore, we retrieved eligible studies published through May 2019, and screened out 51 studies that reported survival data (overall survival [OS] and/or disease-free survival [DFS]) in 28 331 CRC patients at stage II-III, totally 16.4% of whom were characterized as deficient MMR (dMMR). Significant associations of dMMR status were observed with longer OS (Hazard Ratio [HR] = 0.74, 95% CI: 0.68-0.82; P < .001), as well as DFS (HR = 0.67, 95% CI: 0.59-0.75, P < .001). However, dMMR patients received no statistically significant benefit from fluoropyrimidine-based treatment for either OS (HR = 0.84, 95%CI: 0.60-1.17; P = .31) or DFS (HR = 0.83, 95%CI: 0.60-1.15; P = .27), compared with that in proficient MMR (pMMR) patients for both OS (HR = 0.55, 95% CI: 0.43-0.71; P < .001) and DFS (HR = 0.60, 95% CI: 0.50-0.73; P < .001). Our analysis indicate that dMMR CRC patients at stage II-III had higher OS and DFS than pMMR ones, and fluoropyrimidine-based chemotherapy could improve survival in pMMR patients rather than dMMR ones.     

Insulin-like growth factor receptor 1 (IGF1R) expression and survival in non-small cell lung cancer patients: a meta-analysis

The insulin-like growth factor receptor-1 (IGF1R) plays an important role in cancer progression. Previous studies have been controversial with respect to the associations between IGF1R expression and non small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) prognosis. Thus, we performed a meta-analysis to investigate the prognostic value of IGF1R expression in NSCLC patients and the relationship between the expression of IGF1R and clinical characteristics. Two independent reviewers searched PubMed, Embase, Ovid Medline and CNKI to identify eligible studies. Overall survival (OS), disease free survival (DFS) and clinicopathological characteristics were collected from included studies. Pooled hazard ratios (HRs) or odds ratios (ORs) with 95% confidence interval (95% CI) were calculated to estimate the effect. 17 studies comprising 3,294 patients were included in this meta-analysis. The results showed IGF1R positive expression was associated with an unfavorable DFS in NSCLC patients on univariate analysis (HR = 1.26, 95% CI: 1.09-1.46, P = 0.002) and multivariate analysis (HR = 1.49, 95% CI: 1.01-2.20, p = 0.045), but the relationship between IGF1R expression and OS have no significant difference on univariate analysis (HR = 0.91, 95% CI: 0.82-1.01, P = 0.157) and multivariate analysis (HR = 0.79, 95% CI: 0.45-1.41, P = 0.427). Ever smoking and smaller tumor size (T1 or T2) were associated with IGF1R positive expression: pooled OR 1.45 (1.13-1.85) and pooled OR 0.61 (0.60-0.95). Our results suggested IGF1R positive expression as an unfavorable factor for DFS in NSCLC patients, and IGF1R expression was associated with smoking status and tumor size.     

Overexpression of Arginase-1 is an indicator of poor prognosis in patients with colorectal cancer

AimArginase-1 (Arg-1) metabolizes l-arginine to l-ornithine and urea. It has been documented to have a role in various malignancies. However, the relationship between Arg-1 expression and clinicopathological characteristics of colorectal cancer (CRC) patients remains to be elucidated. The present study aimed to analyze the expression and prognostic value of Arg-1 in patients with CRC.Material and methodsThe mRNA and protein expressions of Arg-1 in fresh colorectal cancer tissue specimens and the corresponding noncancerous tissue specimens were examined by RT-qPCR (n = 24) and western blot analysis (n = 17). Arg-1 expression levels were determined in paraffin-embedded CRC tissue specimens (n = 236) by immunohistochemistry. The associations of Arg-1 expression and clinicopathological features and clinical prognosis in 236 CRC patients were analyzed.ResultsThe expression levels of Arg-1 were significantly higher in the CRC tissues compared with the matched noncancerous tissues, and elevated Arg-1 expression was remarkably associated with stage III-IV tumors (P = 0.007), lymph node metastasis (P = 0.019) and a plasma albumin concentration <35 g/l (P = 0.022). Kaplan-Meier analysis indicated that Arg-1 overexpression was associated with adverse prognoses for overall survival (OS) (P < 0.001) and disease-free survival (DFS) (P < 0.001) in all cases. Further analysis revealed that the patients with high Arg-1 expression had significantly shorter OS and DFS at the advanced stages (III + IV) (P = 0.032 for OS, and P = 0.012 for DFS) but not at the early stages (I + II) (P = 0.194 for OS, and P = 0.065 for DFS). Multivariate analysis revealed that Arg-1 overexpression was an independent prognostic factor for OS (P = 0.002) and DFS (P < 0.001) in patients with CRC.ConclusionThe data indicated that Arg-1 overexpression in CRC may be a marker that can discriminate subgroups of patients with a poor prognosis.     

Golgi phosphoprotein3 overexpression is associated with poor survival in patients with solid tumors: a meta-analysis

Golgi phosphoprotein3 (GOLPH3) is known as an oncoprotein and may be a prognostic biomarker in various tumors. Here we performed a meta-analysis on the association of GOLPH3 expression and survival in solid tumors. All eligible studies were identified in Embase, PubMed and Web of Science Databases up to November 2014. Data about overall survival (OS), and disease-free survival (DFS) were extracted and pooled hazard ratios (HRs) of GOLPH3 for survival were calculated by using a random-effect model. Heterogeneity and publication bias were also assessed. A total of 15 eligible studies which comprised of 2529 cases were included in this global analysis: 14 were dealing with overall survival (OS) and 6 were with disease-free survival (DFS). We found that GOLPH3 overexpression was associated with shorter OS (HR 2.487, 95% CI 1.897-3.258, P < 0.001) and DFS (HR 1.911, 95% CI 1.245-2.932, P = 0.003) in general carcinomas. Importantly, subgroup analysis suggested that overexpression of GOLPH3 correlated with shorter OS in urogenital system cancers (HR 4.258, 95% CI 1.81-4.91, P < 0.001). Moreover, publication bias was not significant (P > 0.05). In conclusion, the present meta-analysis showed that overexpression of GOLPH3 predicts poor prognosis in solid tumors.     

结直肠癌中Keratin 17的表达及其临床预后价值

目的 分析角蛋白17(Keratin 17,KRT17)在结直肠癌(colorectal cancer,CRC)中的表达及其临床预后价值.方法 采用生物信息学方法分析KRT17在CRC数据库中的表达及预后价值;进一步,采用免疫组织化学技术检测KRT17蛋白在95对CRC临床样本组织中的表达水平,并分析其表达与患者临床病...     

Prognostic implications of adhesion molecule expression in colorectal cancer

Research on the expression of adhesion molecules, E-cadherin (ECAD), CD24, CD44 and osteopontin (OPN) in colorectal cancer (CRC) has been limited, even though CRC is one of the leading causes of cancer-related deaths. This study was conducted to evaluate the expression of adhesion molecules in CRC and to determine their relationships with clinicopathologic variables, and the prognostic significance. The expression of ECAD, CD24, CD44 and OPN was examined in 174 stage II and III CRC specimens by immunohistochemistry of TMA. Negative ECAD expression was significantly correlated with advanced nodal stage and poor tumor differentiation. Multivariate analysis showed that both negative expression of ECAD and positive expression of CD24 were independent prognostic factors for disease-free survival (DFS) in CRC patients (P<0.001, relative risk [RR] = 5.596, 95% CI = 2.712-11.549; P = 0.038, RR = 3.768, 95% CI = 1.077-13.185, respectively). However, for overall survival (OS), only ECAD negativity showed statistically significant results in multivariate analysis (P<0.001, RR = 4.819, 95% CI = 2.515-9.234). Positive expression of CD24 was associated with poor OS in univariate analysis but was of no prognostic value in multivariate analysis. In conclusion, our study suggests that among these four adhesion molecules, ECAD and CD24 expression can be considered independent prognostic factors. The role of CD44 and OPN may need further evaluation.     

Prognostic value of CD133 expression in stage I lung adenocarcinomas

CD133 is one of the most representative cancer stem cell markers. This study evaluated the potential prognostic value of CD133 expression in stage I lung adenocarcinomas (ADC). Tumors from 177 patients were immunohistochemically examined for CD133 expression, and their associations with disease recurrence were analyzed. Also, the potential prognostic value of combining CD133 expression with proliferating activity measured by immunohistochemical expression of Ki-67 and vessel involvement was evaluated. CD133 high expressers showed a significantly higher risk of recurrence than CD133 low expressers: 5-year disease-free survival (DFS) rate 77.2% vs. 95.1% (p=0.004), adjusted Hazard ratio (HR) 4.37, 95% Confidence Interval (CI) 1.30-14.71 (p=0.017). CD133 high expressers having strong proliferating activity and/or with vessel invasion showed a higher risk of recurrence: 5-year DFS rate 66.5% in CD133 high/Ki-67 high expressers vs. 93.2% in the other types (p<0.001), adjusted HR 8.39, 95% CI 2.65-26.54 (p<0.001): 5-year DFS rate 51.0% in CD133 high expressers with vessel invasion vs. 92.9% in the other types (p<0.001), adjusted HR 4.50, 95% CI 1.51-13.34 (p=0.007): 5-year DFS rate 53.9% in CD133 high/Ki-67 high expressers with vessel invasion vs. 91.2% in the other types (p<0.001), adjusted HR 9.32, 95% CI 3.42-25.39 (p<0.001). In conclusion, the level of CD133 expression is an independent prognostic marker and its combination with proliferating activity and/or vessel invasion could have excellent prognostic value to predict postoperative recurrence in patients with stage I lung ADC.     

Clinicopathologic and prognostic significance of p21 (Cip1/Waf1) expression in bladder cancer

Recent studies have shown that altered expression p21 is shown to associate with tumorigenesis and tumor progression. To investigate the clinicopathological significance and prognostic value of p21 in bladder cancer (BCa). A total of 48 patients with BCa were included in this study. The correlation between p21 expression and clinicopathologic features and survival was studied. Also, a meta-analysis was performed to investigate the relationship between the p21 and BCa survival. Low p21 expression was detected both in tumor tissues compared with adjacent normal tissues. The expression of p21 was closely associated with advanced pathologic TNM stage (P = 0.001) and tumor grade (P = 0.013). Moreover, patients with low p21 expression had shorter recurrence-free survival (P = 0.016) and overall survival rates (P = 0.039). Multivariate Cox regression analysis revealed that p21 low expression was an independent prognostic factor for recurrence free survival (P = 0.03). Additionally, our meta-analysis. The available outcome data from six articles were examined. A meta-analysis of the HR indicated a significantly poor overall survival (OS, HR: 1.75, 95% CI: 1.38-2.21), recurrence free survival (RFS, HR: 1.83, 95% CI: 1.57-2.15), progression free survival (PFS, HR: 2.02, 95% CI: 1.48-2.75), and cancer specific survival (CSS, HR: 1.89, 95% CI: 1.53-2.33) in patients with low expression levels of p21. Our present results indicated that low p21 expression predicated tumor recurrence and poor prognosis in bladder cancer.     

Correlation and prognostic significance of MMP-2 and TFPI-2 differential expression in pancreatic carcinoma

Aberrant expression of matrix metalloproteinase (MMP)-2 and tissue factor pathway inhibitor (TFPI)-2 not only correlate with tumorigenesis, but also with tumor invasion and metastasis. This study aims to investigate the correlation and prognostic significance of MMP-2 and TFPI-2 differential expression in pancreatic carcinoma. Immunohistochemistry was used to evaluate MMP-2 and TFPI-2 expression in tumor tissues and corresponding non-tumor tissues from 122 patients with pancreatic carcinoma. The results showed that the expression of MMP-2 was significantly (P < 0.05) higher in tumor tissues (78.7%) than in adjacent non-tumor tissues (27.9%), whereas the expression of TFPI-2 was significantly (P < 0.001) lower in tumor tissues (27.9%) than in adjacent non-tumor tissues (79.5%). Spearman’s rank correlation test showed a negative correlation between MMP-2 and TFPI-2 expression (r = -0.346, P < 0.001). Kaplan-Meier survival analysis showed that high MMP-2 expression was significantly correlated with decreased disease-free survival (DFS) (P < 0.001) and overall survival (OS) (P < 0.001), while high TFPI-2 expression was significantly associated with increased DFS (P < 0.001) and OS (P < 0.001) of the patients. Multivariate analysis showed that high MMP-2 expression can act as an independent predictive factor for poor DFS (P = 0.01); and low TFPI-2 expression as an independent prognostic factor for poor DFS (P < 0.001) and OS (P < 0.001). In conclusion, our findings suggested that the differential expression of MMP-2 and TFPI-2 have a negative correlation in pancreatic carcinoma tissues; they may be considered as valuable biomarkers for prognosis of pancreatic carcinoma.     

Prognostic value of CD133 expression in stage I lung adenocarcinomas

CD133 is one of the most representative cancer stem cell markers. This study evaluated the potential prognostic value of CD133 expression in stage I lung adenocarcinomas (ADC). Tumors from 177 patients were immunohistochemically examined for CD133 expression, and their associations with disease recurrence were analyzed. Also, the potential prognostic value of combining CD133 expression with proliferating activity measured by immunohistochemical expression of Ki-67 and vessel involvement was evaluated. CD133 high expressers showed a significantly higher risk of recurrence than CD133 low expressers: 5-year disease-free survival (DFS) rate 77.2% vs. 95.1% (p=0.004), adjusted Hazard ratio (HR) 4.37, 95% Confidence Interval (CI) 1.30-14.71 (p=0.017). CD133 high expressers having strong proliferating activity and/or with vessel invasion showed a higher risk of recurrence: 5-year DFS rate 66.5% in CD133 high/Ki-67 high expressers vs. 93.2% in the other types (p<0.001), adjusted HR 8.39, 95% CI 2.65-26.54 (p<0.001): 5-year DFS rate 51.0% in CD133 high expressers with vessel invasion vs. 92.9% in the other types (p<0.001), adjusted HR 4.50, 95% CI 1.51-13.34 (p=0.007): 5-year DFS rate 53.9% in CD133 high/Ki-67 high expressers with vessel invasion vs. 91.2% in the other types (p<0.001), adjusted HR 9.32, 95% CI 3.42-25.39 (p<0.001). In conclusion, the level of CD133 expression is an independent prognostic marker and its combination with proliferating activity and/or vessel invasion could have excellent prognostic value to predict postoperative recurrence in patients with stage I lung ADC.     

Galectin-3 may serve as a marker for poor prognosis in colorectal cancer: A meta-analysis

Galectin-3 has an important function in the development of tumors. The purpose of this meta-analysis was to explore the relationships between the expression of galectin-3 on clinicopathological features and prognosis of colorectal cancer (CRC). A comprehensive literature search was used to identify eligible studies, and Stata software was conducted using in this meta-analysis. A total of 15 studies, including 1661 cases, were matched in the inclusion criteria. The pooled analysis indicated that galectin-3 expression was related to the poor overall survival (OS) in CRC patients (HR: 1.77, 95% CI: 1.36–2.31, P < 0.0001). Our meta-analysis also showed that cancerous tissues have higher levels of galectin-3 expression than normal tissues. Besides, positive galectin-3 expression was also related to advanced TNM stages(III/IV vs. I/II: OR 5.30, 95% CI: 2.42–11.61, P < 0.0001), higher Duke’s stages (C/D vs. A/B: OR 4.00, 95% CI: 2.22–7.22, P < 0.0001), venous invasion (venous invasion vs. not: OR 3.02, 95%CI: 1.75–5.22, P < 0.0001) and higher CEA level (CEA≥5 ng/ml vs. ≤ 5 ng/ml: OR 2.09, 95% CI: 1.09–4.03, P = 0.03). In summary, our results indicated that overexpression of galectin-3 is significantly related to the tumor progression and could be a efficient in predicting the prognosis of patients with CRC.     

Relationship between Tertiary Lymphoid Structure and the Prognosis and Clinicopathologic Characteristics in Solid Tumors

Background: An increasing number of studies had shown that tertiary lymphoid structure (TLS) plays an important role in tumor progression. However, the prognostic role of TLS in various tumors remains controversial. This meta-analysis aims to investigate the clinicopathological and prognostic values of TLS in solid tumors.Methods: A systematic search was conducted in PubMed, EMBASE and Cochrane Library undated to November 2, 2020. Odds ratios of clinical parameters, hazard ratio (HR) of overall survival (OS), relapse-free survival (RFS), disease-free survival (DFS) and relapse rate were calculated in order to evaluate the relationship between TLS expression and clinicopathological or prognostic values in different tumors.Result: 27 eligible studies including 6647 patients with different types of tumors were analyzed. High TLS expression was associated with a longer OS (HR = 0.66, 95% CI: 0.50 - 0.86, P = 0.002) and RFS (HR = 0.61, 95% CI: 0.47 - 0.79, P = 0.0001). Moreover, high TLS levels in tumor were associated with a low risk of recurrence (HR = 0.43, 95% CI: 0.32 - 0.57, P < 0.0001). However, there was no relationship between TLS expression and DFS. Meanwhile, high TLS expression was associated with smaller tumor size (P < 0.00001) and higher tumor infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs). Furthermore, the subgroup analysis showed high TLS expression that may be associated with a lower clinical grading and N stage in breast cancer and colorectal cancer.Conclusion: High TLS expression is associated with the longer OS and RFS in solid tumors, and a lower risk of cancer relapse. Meanwhile, high TLS expression is also associated with a smaller tumor size, higher infiltration of TILs, lower clinical grading and N stage in the tumor. Therefore, high TLS expression in the tumor is a favorable prognostic biomarker for solid tumor patients.     

Combined detection of preoperative serum CEA,CA19-9 and CA242 improve prognostic prediction of surgically treated colorectal cancer patients

We assessed the prognostic significance of preoperative serum carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA), carbohydrate antigen 19-9 (CA19-9) and carbohydrate antigen 242 (CA242) levels in surgically treated colorectal cancer patients. The relationship of preoperative serum CEA, CA19-9 and CA242 levels with disease characteristics was investigated in 310 patients. Correlation between tumor markers was investigated using Pearson correlation test. Univariate and multivariate survival analyses were used to study the relationship between preoperative tumor markers and prognosis [disease free survival (DFS) and overall survival (OS)]. Kaplan-Meier analysis with log rank test was used to assess the impact of tumor marker levels on survival. Positive rate of preoperative serum CEA, CA19-9 and CA242 were 54.84%, 47.42% and 37.10%, respectively. High preoperative CEA level was associated with tumor size (P = 0.038), T stage (P < 0.001) and AJCC stage (P = 0.002). High preoperative CA19-9 level was associated with tumor AJCC stage (P = 0.023). Preoperative CA242 positively correlated with CEA (P < 0.001) and CA19-9 (P < 0.001). Combining the three markers was of independent prognostic value in CRC (HR = 2.532, 95% CI: 1.400-4.579, P = 0.002 for OS; and HR = 2.366, 95% CI: 1.334-4.196, P = 0.003 for DFS). Combined detection of preoperative serum CEA, CA19-9 and CA242 is of independent prognostic value for management of CRC patients treated surgically.     

Association of pancreatic adenocarcinoma up-regulated factor expression in ovarian mucinous adenocarcinoma with poor prognosis

Pancreatic adenocarcinoma up-regulated factor (PAUF) expression is elevated in both ovarian tumors and pancreatic adenocarcinoma. However, PAUF expression in ovarian tumors according to histologic subtype and grade has not been investigated. In this study, we examined various clinicopathologic features of 24 patients with mucinous cystadenoma (MCA), 36 with mucinous borderline tumors (MBTs), and 46 with mucinous adenocarcinomas (MACs) according to PAUF expression status assessed using immunohistochemistry. We found that MACs more frequently stained positive for PAUF than did MCAs and MBTs (P < 0.0001). Although there was no significant differences with respect to other clinicopathologic characteristics of MACs according to PAUF expression status, patients with PAUF-weakly positive and PAUF-strongly positive MACs tended to have a shorter overall survival (OS) than those with PAUF-negative MAC, determined using a Kaplan–Meier analysis (P = 0.1885). After adjusting for various clinicopathologic parameters, PAUF positivity of MACs was a significant predictive factor for disease-free survival (DFS) (negative vs. weakly positive: P = 0.045, hazard ratio [HR] = 57.406, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.090-3022.596; and negative vs. strongly positive: P = 0.034, HR = 97.890, 95% CI: 1.412-6785.925). In conclusion, PAUF was more frequently expressed in MAC than in its benign and borderline counterparts, and was associated with a poor OS and DFS in MAC patients. Therefore, we suggest that PAUF may be a practical biomarker for histopathological categorization and a prognostic marker for patients with an ovarian mucinous tumor.     

Expression of chemokine receptor CXCR7 in colorectal carcinoma and its prognostic significance

Previous studies have shown that chemokine receptor CXCR7 plays critical roles in tumor development. However, the clinicopathological and prognositic significance of CXCR7 in colorectal carcinoma (CRC) has not been fully understood. The aim of our study is to investigate the expression of CXCR7 and its clinical significance in CRC. First, quantitative RT-PCR and Western blot assays were performed to determine the expression of CXCR7 mRNA and protein in 20 paired of CRC tissues and corresponding adjacent non-tumor tissues. Next, immunohistochemistry was performed to detect the expression of CXCR7 protein in another 96 cases of CRC tissues, and analyze its correlation with clinicopathological factors of patients. Finally, the correlation of CXCR7 with 5-year overall survival (OS) and progression free survival (PFS) was statistically analyzed by the Kaplan-Meier method and Cox proportional hazards model. Results showed that the expression levels of CXCR7 mRNA and protein were significantly higher in CRC tissues than in normal tissues. Positive CXCR7 expression was observed to be significantly correlated with lymph nodal metastasis (P < 0.001), distant metastasis (P = 0.017), and advanced TNM stage (P < 0.001). Patients with positive expression of CXCR7 were demonstrated to be associated with worse OS and PFS (P < 0.001, P < 0.001, respectively). Moreover, multivariate survival analysis revealed that CXCR7 expression level might be an independent predictive factor for OS and PFS of CRC patients. Collectively, positive CXCR7 expression in CRC was correlated with tumor development and poor prognosis of patients.     

Up-regulation of long non-coding RNA CCAT2 correlates with tumor metastasis and poor prognosis in cervical squamous cell cancer patients

Background: Dysregulation of long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) plays critical roles in tumor progression. The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between lncRNA CCAT2 expression and cervical squamous cell cancer susceptibility and prognosis. Methods: Expression levels of lncRNA CCAT2 in 123 cervical squamous cell tumor specimens were determined by quantitative real-time PCR (qRT-PCR), to clarify the clinical significance of lncRNA CCAT2 in cervical squamous cell cancer, we further discussed the relationship between lncRNA CCAT2 expression and overall survival (OS) and progression-free survival (PFS). Results: In the present study, we found that lncRNA CCAT2 was up-regulated in cervical squamous cell cancer tissues compared to the adjacent non-tumor tissues. In addition, the high lncRNA CCAT2 expression was significantly associated with the FIGO stage, lymph node metastasis and depth of cervical invasion (P<0.05). Furthermore, patients with high expression of lncRNA CCAT2 had poor OS (HR=2.813, 95% CI: 1.504-6.172; P=0.017), and PFS rates (HR=3.072, 95% CI: 1.716-8.174; P=0.008). Multivariate Cox proportional hazard model analysis demonstrated that high lncRNA CCAT2 expression was an independent poor prognostic factor for cervical squamous cell cancer patients. Conclusions: Our study suggested that high expression of lncRNA CCAT2 is related to the prognosis of cervical squamous cell cancer; it may be a new prognostic biomarker and potential therapeutic target for cervical squamous cell cancer intervention.     

Decreased expression of lncRNA loc285194 as an independent prognostic marker in cancer: A systematic review and meta-analysis

BackgroundSeveral studies have indicated that lncRNA loc285194 is aberrantly expressed in many types of cancer. This meta-analysis was performed to elucidate the potential role of lncRNA loc285194 as a prognostic marker in malignant tumors.MethodsAn electronic search of PubMed, Medline, Embase, and Web of Science was performed to identify all eligible papers related to the prognostic impact of lncRNA loc285194 expression in cancer. Hazard ratios (HR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) were extracted from the included studies to explore the association between lncRNA loc285194 expression and patient overall and disease-free survival (OS & DFS). The odds ratios (ORs) were also calculated to assess the association between lncRNA loc285194 expression and clinicopathological parameters.ResultsA total of 14 eligible articles with 1215 patients were included in this meta-analysis. Meta-results revealed that low expression of lncRNA loc285194 was significantly correlated with poorer overall survival (OS; HR = 2.34; 95% CI, 1.78–3.06; P < 0.001) and disease-free survival (DFS; HR = 2.66; 95% CI, 1.95–3.64; P = 0.001) rates in cancer patients. Low lncRNA loc285194 expression was also found to be significantly associated with lymph node metastasis (LNM; OR = 2.17; 95% CI, 1.23–3.83; P = 0.007), and distant metastasis (DM; OR = 2.49; 95% CI, 1.26–4.91; P = 0.009).ConclusionsThis study demonstrated that decreased level of lncRNA loc285194 was associated with poor clinical outcomes for patients with different types of cancer, supporting a promising potential biomarker for prognosis and metastasis in human cancers.     

Prognostic role of Amphiregulin and the correlation with androgen receptor in invasive breast cancer

BackgroundIn androgen-sensitive prostate cancer, androgenic stimulation induces the synthesis of amphiregulin (AREG). Research is lacking on the role of AREG in invasive breast cancer and the co-expression with androgen receptor (AR) status.Materials and methodsThe present study investigated the prognostic role of AREG in invasive breast cancer cases (N = 298) and the co-expression with the AR status as analysed by immunohistochemistry (IHC).ResultsThe samples were divided into groups according to AREG expression levels: low/no expression (AREG^low/no) and high expression (AREG^high). As shown by cytoplasmic immunostaining, 46.0% (137/298) of invasive breast cancers were AREG^high, and 54.0% (161/298) of cases were AREG^low/no. Co-expression of the AR and AREG accounted for 62.4% (186/298) of cases. A Kaplan–Meier analysis revealed that AREG^high and AR⁺/AREG^high decreased patients’ overall survival (OS) (P = 0.002 and P = 0.006, respectively) and disease-free survival (DFS) (P < 0.001 and P < 0.001, respectively). In Cox models, AR⁺/AREG^high remained an independent prognostic indicator of OS and DFS in invasive breast cancer (hazard ratio [HR], 0.591, 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.407-0.859, P = 0.006; HR, 0.449, 95% CI, 0.236-0.853, P = 0.014, respectively). AREG^high remained an independent prognostic indicator of OS and DFS in estrogen receptor (ER)-negative tumours (P < 0.05).ConclusionsThis study suggested that AREG and the AR were co-expressed in invasive breast cancer. Thus, AREG and the AR may be valuable prognostic biomarkers in invasive breast cancer and promising therapeutic targets, especially in ER-negative breast cancer.