Journal
ASIAN PACIFIC JOURNAL OF CANCER PREVENTION
Volume 15, Issue 19, Pages 8429-8433Publisher
ASIAN PACIFIC ORGANIZATION CANCER PREVENTION
DOI: 10.7314/APJCP.2014.15.19.8429
Keywords
Circulating tumor cells; small-cell lung cancer; overall survival; progress-free survival-meta-analysis
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Circulating tumor cells (CTCs) are believed to be particularly important and a reliable marker of malignancy. However, the prognostic significance of CTCs detected in patients with small cell lung cancer (SCLC) is still unclear. We therefore aimed to assess the prognostic relevance of CTCs using a meta-analysis. We searched PubMed for relevant studies and statistical analyses were conducted to calculate the hazard ratio (HR) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) using fixed or random-effect models according to the heterogeneity of included studies. A total of 7 papers covering 440 SCLC patients were combined in the final analysis. The meta-analysis revealed that CTCs were significantly associated with shorter overall survival (HR= 1.9; 95%CI: 1.19-3.04; Z=2.67; P<0.0001) and progression-free survival (HR=2.6; 95%CI: 1.9-3.54; Z=6.04; P<0.0001). The results thus suggest that the presence of CTCs indicates a poor prognosis in patients with SCLC. Further well-designed prospective studies are required to explore the clinical applications of CTCs in SCLC.
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