Thymidylate synthase expression and prognosis in colorectal cancer: a meta-analysis of colorectal cancer survival data.

Abstract

BACKGROUND:

Although many studies have investigated the prognostic effect of thymidylate synthase (TS) in colorectal cancer, no consensus has been reached. The aim of this meta-analysis was to obtain a more precise estimate of the prognostic significance of TS expression in localized cancers treated by curative resection and adjuvant chemotherapy.

MATERIALS AND METHOD:

Seventeen eligible studies reporting survival in 2,893 patients stratified by TS expression were pooled using a fixed- or random-effects model. The main outcome measure was hazard ratio (HR).

RESULTS:

The overall HR for overall survival was 1.01 (95% CI 0.74-1.39, p=0.947), with an I2 of 64.4%. The total HR for disease-free survival was 1.36 (95% CI 0.97-1.89, p=0.072), with an I2 of 75.8%. In the TS protein-tested subgroup, the total HR for disease-free survival was 1.72 (95% CI 1.02-2.89, p=0.042), with an I2 of 81.3%.

CONCLUSION:

Our meta-analysis showed that, in the adjuvant setting, TS expression does not predict a poorer disease-free survival or a worse overall survival. Therefore, we believe that it is inappropriate to regard TS expression as a prognostic factor for patients with stage II and stage III colorectal cancer treated by surgery and adjuvant chemotherapy.

• Authors: Yao Chen, Cuihua Yi, Lian Liu, Bei Li, Yawei Wang, Xiuwen Wang
• Journal: The International journal of biological markers (Int J Biol Markers) Vol. 27 Issue 3 Pg. e203-11 (Oct 08 2012) ISSN: 1724-6008 [Electronic] United States
• PMID: 23015402 (Publication Type: Journal Article, Meta-Analysis)

Chemical References

• Thymidylate Synthase

Topics

• Aged
• Colorectal Neoplasms (drug therapy, mortality)
• Female
• Humans
• Male
• Middle Aged
• Prognosis
• Retrospective Studies
• Survival Analysis
• Thymidylate Synthase (metabolism, therapeutic use)