Circulating tumor cells prior to initial treatment is an important prognostic factor of survival in non-small cell lung cancer: a meta-analysis and system review

BMC Pulm Med. 2019 Dec 26;19(1):262. doi: 10.1186/s12890-019-1029-x.

Abstract

Background: Our study aimed to verify the prognostic value of circulating tumor cells (CTCs) prior to initial treatment on survival of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) by using meta-analysis and system review of published studies.

Materials and methods: The PubMed, EMBASE and Cochrane Library were searched, respectively, to identify all studies that addressed the issues of CTCs prior to initial treatment and progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS). Finally, ten citations were included for analysis and assessment of publication bias by using review manager 5.3 statistical software and STATA 15.0.

Results: Randomized model analyzing multivariate Cox Proportional Hazards Regression indicated that higher abundance of CTCs significantly predicts poorer prognosis of lung cancer cases basing both on PFS (Z = 2.31, P = 0.02) and OS of advanced cases (Z = 2.44, P = 0.01), and systematic study aslo indicated the similar results.

Conclusion: High CTCs prior to initial treatment can predict shorter PFS and OS in NSCLC, and further studies are warranted in the future.

Keywords: Circulating tumor cells; Meta-analysis; Non-small cell lung cancer; Prognosis.

Publication types

  • Meta-Analysis
  • Systematic Review

MeSH terms

  • Carcinoma, Non-Small-Cell Lung / blood*
  • Carcinoma, Non-Small-Cell Lung / mortality
  • Carcinoma, Non-Small-Cell Lung / therapy
  • Cell Count
  • Humans
  • Lung Neoplasms / blood*
  • Lung Neoplasms / mortality
  • Lung Neoplasms / therapy
  • Multivariate Analysis
  • Neoplastic Cells, Circulating*
  • Prognosis
  • Progression-Free Survival
  • Proportional Hazards Models