中性粒细胞与淋巴细胞比率评估胃癌预后的Meta分析

目的分析探讨中性粒细胞与淋巴细胞比率(neutrophil-lymphocyte ratio, NLR)对胃癌患者预后评估的价值。 方法采用循证医学的meta分析研究。首先,从Embase、Medline和Web of Science数据库中检索关键词gastric cancer、stomach cancer、gastric carcinoma、stomach carcinoma、gastric neoplasm、stomach neoplasm、neutrophil和lymphocyte。然后,根据各纳入研究的总生存率(overall survival, OS)和无进展生存期(progression-free survival, PFS)/无疾病生存期(disease-free survival, DFS)合并生存危险比(hazard ratio, HR)的异质性,决定用固定或随机效应模型计算OS和PFS/DFS的合并HR。若合并HR>1,且其95%可信区间(confidence interval, CI)也>1, 则为NLR升高与胃癌患者OS或PFS/DFS的降低有显著联系。 结果收集18篇文献共纳入5 065例胃癌患者进行meta分析。升高的NLR与OS降低存在显著关联(HR为1.79,95%CI 1.54~2.08)。亚组分析中,胃癌多种治疗方案组和化疗组NLR升高均与OS降低存在显著关联[HR分别为1.84, (95% CI 1.48~2.29)和1.69, (95% CI 1.41~2.03)];而NLR≤3.2组和NLR>3.2组亦均与OS的降低存在显著关联[HR分别为1.80, (95% CI 1.46~2.23)和1.93, (95% CI 1.58~2.36)]。在胃癌患者OS的单因素meta回归分析中, 发表年份、种族、NLR临界值、治疗方案、患者数、进展期患者比例和男性比例都不是引起胃癌患者异质性来源的可能原因(P值分别为0.585、0.887、0.731、0.697、0.613、0.877、0.775)。 结论胃癌患者中升高的NLR与OS降低存在显著的关联,NLR可作为评价胃癌患者预后的标志物。     

Prognostic Value of Prealbumin in Liver Cancer: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Abstract

Accumulated studies have reported the prognostic significance of prealbumin in liver cancer, but the results were not conclusive. The aim of this study was to evaluate the association between pretreatment serum prealbumin and clinical outcome of liver cancer patients through a meta-analysis. We comprehensively searched EMBASE, PubMed, Web of Science and the Cochrane library to identify eligible studies. The pooled hazard ratios (HRs) and their 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were utilized to evaluate the prognostic value of pretreatment serum prealbumin in overall survival (OS) and recurrence-free survival (RFS) of liver cancer patients. A total of 3470 patients from 10 eligible studies were finally included for analysis. The combined effects of prealbumin on liver cancer patients’ OS and RFS were HR?=?1.83, 95% CI: 1.46–2.30, P?<?0.001 and HR?=?1.47, 95% CI: 1.01–2.14, P?=?0.045, respectively. Sensitivity and subgroup analysis showed that the pooled HR of prealbumin on liver cancer patients’ OS was stable. Since potential publication bias was identified in the OS studies, the trim-and-fill method therefore was performed to explore publication bias, and the results showed reliability. This meta-analysis shows that low pretreatment serum prealbumin is significantly associated with poor prognosis of liver cancer patients.     

Aldehyde dehydrogenase serves as a biomarker for worse survival profiles in ovarian cancer patients: an updated meta-analysis

Background

The purpose of this comprehensive meta-analysis was to assess the association of aldehyde dehydrogenase (ALDH) expression with overall survival (OS) and disease-free survival (DFS)/progression-free survival (PFS) in ovarian cancer patients.

Methods

Systematic searches of Pubmed databases was performed to identify relevant literature published before February 28, 2018. A total of 14 studies (13 articles) with 2210 ovarian cancer patients were pooled. All included studies were performed by using Immunohistochemistry (IHC) for detection of ALDH expression. Hazard ratio (HR) and 95% confidence interval (CI) were extracted from included studies to evaluate the correlation of ALDH expression with OS and DFS/PFS.

Results

High expression of ALDH was associated with worse OS (HR: 1.43; 95% CI: 1.18–1.73) and poor DFS/PFS (HR: 1.55, 95% CI: 1.12–2.14). No evidence of publication bias was observed in OS (Begg’s test, P?=?0.113; Egger’s test, P?=?0.355) and DFS/PFS (Begg’s test, P?=?0.655; Egger’s test, P?=?0.189) in ovarian cancer patients. The subgroup of studies with cut-off value of low expression showed that high expression of ALDH was correlated with poor OS (HR: 1.36; 95% CI: 1.14–1.62) and DFS/PFS (HR: 1.79; 95% CI: 1.45–2.20) in ovarian cancer patients, with no observed heterogeneity (OS: I² =?0%, P?=?0.45; DFS/PFS: I² =?0%, P?=?0.55).

Conclusion

In conclusion, high expression of ALDH is correlated with worse survival profiles in ovarian cancer patients, indicating that ALDH might act as a potential molecular biomarker for prognosis of ovarian cancer.

     

评价新辅助化疗用于局部晚期宫颈癌手术治疗前的临床价值

目的 评价新辅助化疗用于局部晚期宫颈癌手术治疗前的临床价值.方法 网上检索MEDLINE、PUBMED、ELSEVIER ScienceDirect、CNKI等,获取全文.筛选文献,实验组是新辅助化疗联合手术,对照组是直接手术,提取用于评价的指标包括：淋巴结转移、脉管浸润、间质浸润、切缘阳性率、3年生存率（OS）、3年无瘤生存率（DFS）、5年生存率、5年无瘤生存率,并进行Meta分析.结果 新辅助化疗组与对照组相比,淋巴结转移的HR和95%CI分别为（0.54,0.33～0.86）,间质浸润的分别为（0.45,0.24～0.86）,脉管浸润的分别为（0.25,0.16～0.38）,差异均有统计学意义（P〈0.05）;切缘阳性率的HR和95%CI分别为（0.45,0.21～0.99）,3年OS分别为（1.24,0.59～2.63）,3年DFS分别为（1.34,0.65～2.78）,5年OS分别为（0.94,0.54～1.64）,5年DFS分别为（0.99,0.71～1.93）,差异均无统计学意义（P〉0.05）.结论 局部晚期宫颈癌,新辅助化疗能减少预后不良相关病理因素,但不能改善患者的生存率.     

A pooled analysis of the association of isolated low levels of high-density lipoprotein cholesterol with cardiovascular mortality in Japan

Low levels of serum high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) have been shown to be associated with increased risk of coronary heart disease (CHD). However, because this is usually observed in the context of other lipid abnormalities, it is not known whether isolated low serum HDL-C levels are an independent risk factor for CHD. We performed a large pooled analysis in Japan using data from nine cohorts with 41,206 participants aged 40–89 years who were free of cardiovascular disease at baseline. We divided participants into three groups: isolated low HDL-C, non-isolated low HDL-C, and normal HDL-C. Cohort-stratified Cox proportional hazards models were used to estimate multivariate-adjusted hazard ratios (HRs) for death due to CHD, ischemic stroke, and intracranial cerebral hemorrhage; during a 12.9-year follow-up, we observed 355, 286, and 138 deaths, respectively, in these groups. Non-isolated low HDL-C was significantly associated with increased risk of CHD compared with normal HDL-C (HR 1.37, 95 % confidence interval (CI) 1.04–1.80); however, isolated low HDL-C was not. Although isolated low HDL-C was significantly associated with decreased risk of CHD (HR 0.51, 95 % CI 0.29–0.89) in women, it was significantly associated with increased risk of intracranial cerebral hemorrhage in all participants (HR 1.62, 95 % CI 1.04–2.53) and in men (HR 2.00, 95 % CI 1.04–3.83). In conclusion, isolated low HDL-C levels are not associated with increased risk of CHD in Japan. CHD risk may, therefore, be more strongly affected by serum total cholesterol levels in this population.     

Effects of Serum Triglycerides on Prostate Cancer and Breast Cancer Risk: A Meta-Analysis of Prospective Studies

Epidemiological studies show conflicting results regarding the link between serum triglyceride and the risk of prostate cancer and breast cancer. Therefore, we performed a meta-analysis of prospective studies to clarify this association. We searched PubMed, EMBASE, the Chinese Biomedical Database (CBM), and the China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI) database to identify relevant prospective studies of the relationship between serum triglyceride and prostate cancer and breast cancer risk. Study-specific estimates adjusting for potential confounders were combined to evaluate a summary relative risks (RRs) and 95% confidence intervals (95% CIs) using a fixed- or random-effects model. A total of 11 prospective studies (619,410 subjects and 15,691 incident prostate cancer patients) and 8 prospective studies (590,878 subjects and 12,177 incident breast cancer patients) were respectively included in our meta-analysis to assess the associations of serum triglyceride with prostate cancer and breast cancer risk. The pooled adjusted RR estimates for prostate cancer and breast cancer for the highest versus the lowest exposure levels of serum triglycerides were 0.95 (95% CI: 0.87–1.04) and 0.94 (95% CI: 0.87–1.00), respectively. Additionally, a dose–response analysis revealed that serum levels of triglycerides were not associated with the risk of prostate cancer and breast cancer. We found that serum triglyceride was not related to the risk of prostate cancer and breast cancer.     

Coffee Consumption and Prostate Cancer Risk: A Meta-Analysis of Cohort Studies

This meta-analysis was conducted to assess the association between coffee consumption and prostate cancer risk. Thirteen cohort studies with 34,105 cases and 539,577 participants were included in the meta-analysis. The summary relative risks (RRs) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) for different coffee intake levels were calculated. Dose-response relationship was assessed using generalized least square trend estimation. The pooled RR for the highest vs. lowest coffee intake was 0.90 (95% CI: 0.85–0.95), with no significant heterogeneity across studies (P = 0.267; I²= 17.5%). The dose-response analysis showed a lower cancer risk decreased by 2.5% (RR = 0.975; 95% CI: 0.957–0.995) for every 2 cups/day increment in coffee consumption. Stratifying by geographic region, there was a statistically significant protective influence of coffee on prostate cancer risk among European populations. In subgroup analysis of prostate cancer grade, the summary RRs were 0.89 (95% CI: 0.83–0.96) for nonadvanced, 0.82 (95% CI: 0.61–1.10) for advanced and 0.76 (95% CI: 0.55–1.06) for fatal diseases. Our findings suggest that coffee consumption may be associated with a reduced risk of prostate cancer and it also has an inverse association with nonadvanced prostate cancer. Because of the limited number of studies, more prospective studies with large sample size are needed to confirm this association.     

Dose-response relation between serum total cholesterol levels and overall cancer risk: evidence from 12 prospective studies involving 1,926,275 participants

This study aimed to clarify the association between serum total cholesterol (TC) levels and overall cancer risk. Study-specific relative risks (RR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) were pooled using a random-effects model, and dose–response relation was also evaluated. Twelve prospective studies were identified with a total of 1,926,275 participants and 13,1676 cases. High levels of serum TC showed an inverse association with overall cancer risk (RR for the highest versus the lowest category: 0.87, 95% CI: 0.83?～?0.90; I²?=?52.5%). A linear dose-response relation between serum TC levels and overall cancer risk was found (p?=?.004 for Wald test; I²?=?49.6%), and the pooled RR was 0.92 (95% CI: 0.89?～?0.94) for 3?mmol/L, 0.86 (95% CI: 0.81?～?0.90) for 5?mmol/L, 0.80 (95% CI: 0.74?～?0.87) for 7?mmol/L. Our dose-response meta-analysis of 12 prospective studies indicated that higher serum TC levels were significantly associated with reduced cancer risk.     

术前血清CA19-9和NSE对食管鳞癌患者预后的影响

  目的  研究术前血清癌抗原19-9（cancer antigen 19-9,CA19-9）和神经元特异性烯醇化酶（neuron-specific enolase,NSE）对食管鳞癌（esophageal squamous cell carcinoma,ESCC）患者预后的影响。  方法  前瞻性分析176例经病理确诊的食管鳞癌新发病例。应用χ2检验分析CA19-9和NSE与患者一般临床特征之间的关系。运用Kaplan-Meier法绘制生存曲线,通过Log-rank法进行生存率的比较,利用Cox比例风险回归模型进行多因素分析。  结果  高CA19-9和NSE联合检测组的食管鳞癌患者预后较差（总生存:HR=2.310,95%CI:1.209~4.418;无病生存:HR=2.354,95%CI:1.265~4.381）。相比于两种标志物单独检测,联合检测CA19-9和NSE对食管鳞癌患者生存预测的准确性更高（总生存:C-index=0.686;无病生存:C-index=0.684）。  结论  术前血清CA19-9和NSE是食管鳞癌患者预后的危险因素,联合检测对食管鳞癌患者预后预测的准确性更高。     

Meta- and pooled analyses of the methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase C677T and A1298C polymorphisms and gastric cancer risk: a huge-GSEC review

Methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase (MTHFR) is a key enzyme in the metabolism of folate, whose role in gastric carcinogenesis is controversial. The authors performed a meta-analysis and individual data pooled analysis of case-control studies that examined the association between C677T and A1298C polymorphisms (the former being associated with low folate serum levels) and gastric cancer (meta-analyses: 16 studies, 2,727 cases and 4,640 controls for C677T and seven studies, 1,223 cases and 2,015 controls for A1298C; pooled analyses: nine studies, 1,540 cases and 2,577 controls for C677T and five studies, 1,146 cases and 1,549 controls for A1298C). An increased risk was found for MTHFR 677 TT in the meta-analysis (odds ratio (OR) = 1.52, 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.31, 1.77) and pooled analysis (OR = 1.49, 95% CI: 1.14, 1.95). No association resulted for MTHFR 1298 CC (meta-OR = 0.94, 95% CI: 0.65, 1.35; pooled OR = 0.90, 95% CI: 0.69, 1.34). Results from the pooled analysis of four studies on C677T stratified according to folate levels showed an increased risk for individuals with low (OR = 2.05, 95% CI: 1.13, 3.72) versus high (OR = 0.95, 95% CI: 0.54, 1.67) folate levels. Overall, these findings support the hypothesis that folate plays a role in gastric carcinogenesis.     

Frailty as a Predictor of All-Cause Mortality Among Older Nursing Home Residents: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis

ObjectivesWe performed a meta-analysis based on prospective cohort studies to synthesize the pooled risk effect and to determine whether frailty is a predictor of all-cause mortality.DesignSystematic review and meta-analysis.SettingPubMed, EMBASE, and the Cochrane Library were systematically searched in October 2018. A random effects model was applied to combine the results according to the heterogeneity of the included studies.ParticipantsOlder nursing home residents.MeasurementsMortality risk due to frailty.ResultsFourteen studies (9076 participants) were included in this meta-analysis. Pooled results demonstrated that nursing home residents with frailty were at an increased risk of mortality [pooled hazards ratio (HR) = 1.88, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 1.57, 2.25, I² = 47.8%, P < .001] compared to those without frailty. Results of subgroup analyses showed that frailty was significantly associated with the risk of mortality among older nursing home residents when using FRAIL-NH (pooled HR = 2.10, 95% CI = 1.60-2.77, P < .001) and Frailty Index (pooled HR = 1.74, 95% CI = 1.40-2.18, P < .001) to define frail people, whereas when using the diagnosis criteria of CSHA-CFS for frailty, the pooled HR was 2.82 (95% CI = 0.79-10.10, P = .111). In addition, the subgroup analysis for length of follow-up showed that studies with a follow-up period of 1 year or more (pooled HR = 1.83, 95% CI = 1.52, 2.21, P < .001) reported a significantly higher rate of mortality among individuals with frailty, compared to those without frailty. Similar results were also found in studies with a follow-up period of less than 1 year (pooled HR = 2.67, 95% CI = 1.43, 5.00, P = .002).Conclusions and ImplicationsFrailty is a significant predictor of all-cause mortality in older nursing home residents. Therefore, there is an urgent need to screen for frailty in nursing home residents and carry out appropriate multidisciplinary intervention strategies to prevent poor outcomes and reduce the rate of mortality among older nursing home residents.     

Dairy Consumption and Gastric Cancer Risk: A Meta-Analysis of Epidemiological Studies

Studies investigating the association of dairy consumption with gastric cancer risk have reported inconsistent findings. We conducted this systematic review and meta-analysis to review and summarize the epidemiologic evidence on the relation of total dairy and milk consumption with risk of gastric cancer. We summarized the available literature on this topic using meta-analysis of relative risks (RR) associated with total dairy and milk intake. The total of 17 case-control and 6 cohort studies (3256 cases) were eligible for inclusion. When comparing the highest with the lowest category of total dairy intake, the results of cohort studies indicated that increased consumption of total dairy food was associated with a reduced risk of gastric cancer (RR = 0.76; 95% CI: 0.64–0.91), whereas case-control studies provided no association. In subgroup analysis, significantly inverse associations between total diary food consumption and gastric cancer risk were observed in Europe subgroup (RR = 0.73; 95% CI: 0.54–0.99), U.S. subgroup (RR = 0.78; 95% CI: 0.63–0.98) but not in Asia subgroup. However, milk consumption was not associated with gastric cancer risk no matter in main or subgroup analysis. The results of cohort studies, but not case-control studies, suggested that total dairy might be related to the reduction of gastric cancer risk. Milk consumption was not associated with gastric cancer risk.     

Prognostic value of quality of life measured after treatment on subsequent survival in patients with nasopharyngeal carcinoma

Purpose

Pretreatment quality of life (QoL) has been used to predict survival in cancer patients. In this study, we examined the prognostic value of QoL measured after treatment on subsequent survival in patients with nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC).

Methods

We enrolled 273 patients with NPC who had been curatively treated for more than 1 year. The EORTC QLQ-C30 and H&N35 questionnaires were completed 1 year after radiotherapy. The predictability of QoL variables on disease-specific survival (DSS) and overall survival (OS) was analyzed using Cox’s proportional hazards models.

Results

Twenty-nine (10.6 %) patients developed locoregional relapse and 27 (9.9 %) had distant metastasis after the QoL survey with subsequent 5-year DSS and OS rates of 87.9 % and 84.0 %, respectively. Based on the QLQ-C30, scales of physical functioning, fatigue, and appetite loss significantly predicted DSS and OS (p < 0.05). In the H&N35, only sexuality was significantly correlated with DSS and OS (p < 0.05). An increment of 10 points in physical functioning (HR: 0.69; 95 % CI: 0.48–0.90; p = 0.004) or a decline of 10 points in fatigue problems (HR: 1.40; 95 % CI: 1.19–1.61; p = 0.0002), appetite loss (HR: 1.21; 95 % CI: 1.03–1.40; p = 0.02), and sexuality (HR: 1.14; 95 % CI: 1.02–1.25; p = 0.019) was associated with better OS.

Conclusion

Some QoL variables measured after the treatment provide prognostic value on subsequent survival in patients with NPC.     

Serum Biomarkers of Iron Status and Risk of Primary Liver Cancer: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Hereditary hemochromatosis, a disease which causes iron overload, has been shown to increase liver cancer risk but the association between serum iron levels within non-hemochromatosis population and liver cancer risk is unclear. We investigated this association by conducting a systematic review and meta-analysis. Medline, Embase, and Scopus were searched to identify articles published up to January 2019. The search incorporated terms for liver cancer (hepatocellular and cholangiocarcinoma) and for serum iron (iron, ferritin, and transferrin). Briefly, nested case-control or cohort studies were included if they recorded a measure of iron, prior to diagnosis, and contained liver cancer patients and controls. Meta-analysis techniques were used to calculate pooled hazard ratios (HRs) and investigate heterogeneity between studies. Nine relevant studies were identified. There was evidence of an association between high serum ferritin and primary liver cancer risk (six studies, HR 1.49, 95% CI 1.13, 1.96) and high serum iron and primary liver cancer risk (three studies, HR 2.47 95% CI 1.31, 4.63). However, these associations were subject to heterogeneity (I²?=?62%, P?=?0.02 and I²=80%, P?=?0.007, respectively). In conclusion, we found some evidence that increased iron levels was associated with primary liver cancer. The cause of this association merits additional research.     

Citrus fruit intake and bladder cancer risk: a meta-analysis of observational studies

Epidemiological studies have investigated the association between citrus fruit and bladder cancer risk; however, the results are inconsistent. To assess these issues, we conducted a meta-analysis of currently available studies. We identified relevant articles by searching the MEDLINE and EMBASE databases. We calculated the summary relative risk (RR) with 95% confidence interval (95% CI) using a random effect model. We included eight case–control studies and six cohort studies in the meta-analysis. There was a significant inverse association between citrus fruit intake and bladder cancer risk in all pooled studies (RR: 0.85; 95% CI, 0.76–0.94) and case–control studies (RR: 0.77; 95% CI, 0.64–0.92), but not in the cohort studies (RR: 0.96; 95% CI, 0.87–1.07). Our results suggest that citrus fruit intake is related to decreased bladder cancer risk. Subsequent well-designed, large prospective studies are needed to obtain better understanding of this relationship.     

Dyslipidemia and non-small cell lung cancer risk in Chinese population: a case-control study

Background

Numerous studies reported that dyslipidemia was associated with cancer risk. However, few studies investigated the associations between dyslipidemia and non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC).

Methods

Four hundred twenty-four histologically confirmed NSCLC cases and 414 controls, matched for age and sex, were enrolled to examine the relationship between dyslipidemia and NSCLC. Demographic and clinical data were obtained from patients’ medical records and telephone interviews. Odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were estimated using unconditional logistic regression.

Results

Abnormal triglyceride (TG) and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) levels showed statistically significant coexistence with NSCLC compared with controls. Higher levels of TG were associated with a higher risk of NSCLC (OR?=?1.541, 95% CI, (1.072–2.215)). The odds ratios (ORs) for NSCLC for normal and high levels of HDL-C versus those with a low level of HDL-C were 0.337(95% CI, (0.242–0.468)) and 0.288(95% CI, (0.185–0.448)), respectively. After adjustment for age, sex, smoking status, hypertension, body mass index, diabetes and lipid profiles, the adjusted OR for normal and high levels of HDL-C were 0.320(95% CI, (0.218–0.470)) and 0.233(95% CI, (0.134–0.407)), respectively. However, after adjustment, high levels of TG increased the risk of NSCLC but not significantly (OR?=?1.052, 95% CI (0.671–1.649)).

Conclusions

This study provided evidence that dyslipidemia increased the risk of NSCLC in Chinese population.

     

Poultry and Fish Consumption in Relation to Total Cancer Mortality: A Meta-Analysis of Prospective Studies

Observational studies on the association between fish and poultry intake and the risk of total cancer mortality have been reported with mixed results. Thus, we aimed to assess this association by conducting a meta-analysis of prospective studies. We performed a literature search on PubMed database through February 1, 2017 to identify relative prospective studies. A random-effects model was used to calculate the summary estimates. We identified fourteen prospective studies involving 2,378,204 participants and 96,712 cancer mortality events. Comparing the highest category of consumption with lowest category, pooled relative risk (RR) of total cancer mortality was 0.99 (95% confidence interval [CI], 0.94–1.05) for fish (10 studies) and 0.96 (95% CI, 0.93–1.00) for poultry (8 studies), respectively. However, we failed to identify any dose–response association based on a limited number of eligible studies, with a pooled RR of 0.98 (95% CI, 0.92–1.05) and 0.97 (95% CI, 0.88–1.07) for each 100 g per day increment in fish and poultry consumption, respectively. In summary, this meta-analysis indicates that consumption of either fish or poultry is not substantially associated with lower risk of total cancer mortality. The observed weak inverse association for high poultry consumption needs to be verified in additional large prospective studies.     

Relationship between serum protein and mortality in adults on long-term hemodialysis: Exhaustive review and meta-analysis

The aim of this exhaustive review and meta-analysis was to explore the relation among serum protein, inflammatory markers, and all-cause and cardiovascular mortalities in adult patients on maintenance hemodialysis. We searched the Medline, Science Citation Index, Academic Search Premier, Cochrane Library, and Embase electronic data bases. Data extraction and quality assessment were done independently by two reviewers and results were pooled using the random effects model. Cochran's Q was used to identify heterogeneity and a funnel plot was used for assessment of publication bias. A meta-analysis was performed on 38 studies (265 330 patients) reporting on serum proteins, inflammatory markers, and mortality. A significant inverse relation was found between serum albumin and all-cause (hazard ratio [HR] 0.7038, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.6367–0.7781) and cardiovascular (HR 0.8726, 95% CI 0.7909–0.9628) mortalities, with a significantly stronger relation with all-cause mortality (P = 0.0014). Pooled results for C-reactive protein showed a weak but significant direct relation with all-cause mortality (HR 1.0322, 95% CI 1.0151–1.0496), but there was not a significant relation between C-reactive protein and cardiovascular mortality (HR 1.0172, 95% CI 0.9726–1.0639). A high degree of heterogeneity was identified among studies especially in the case of all-cause mortality. An asymmetrical funnel plot for serum albumin is suggestive of publication bias. From the meta-analysis it is concluded that serum albumin showed a significant inverse relation with all-cause and cardiovascular mortalities but the relation between prealbumin and all-cause mortality was not significant. C-reactive protein showed a significant direct relation with all-cause mortality but not with cardiovascular mortality. The potential adverse effects of malnutrition and infections in relation to mortality highlight the need for continued treatment of infections and correction of malnutrition in patients on dialysis.     

Green Tea Consumption and Risk of Esophageal Cancer: A Meta-Analysis of Published Epidemiological Studies

We performed a meta-analysis to analyze the association of various levels of green tea consumption with risk of esophageal cancer. We searched MEDLINE, EMBASE, and the Cochrane Library for studies of green tea consumption and esophageal cancer and identified 12 observational studies. For esophageal cancer, the pooled relative risk (RR) was 1.09 [95% confidence interval (CI), 0.76–1.55] for greatest vs. non/least green tea consumption; however, there was significant heterogeneity across studies (P = 0.00, I² = 75.5%). Compared with subjects who drank no/least green tea, the pooled RR was 1.14 (95% CI = 0.97–1.35) for moderate drinkers, 0.94 (95% CI = 0.77–1.13) for those who drank little, and 0.97 (95% CI = 0.77–1.22) for all subjects who had ever drunk green tea. Subgroup analysis showed that the RR was 0.46 (95% CI = 0.29–0.73) for female subjects. The results of the present meta-analysis are that any association between green tea and risk of esophageal cancer remains unclear. Subgroup analyses indicated that greater consumption of green tea might reduce the risk of esophageal cancer in female subjects. However, the results are based on limited research. Further research is needed to confirm the results and clarify the likely biological mechanisms.     

Sensitivity analyses allowed more appropriate and reliable meta-analysis conclusions for multiple outcomes when missing data was present

OBJECTIVE: A major problem for meta-analysis of multiple outcomes is the unavailability of some estimates from published and unpublished studies. Dissemination bias, in how and what outcomes are reported or published, may be causing this incompleteness. This article illustrates these problems and presents possible sensitivity analyses to allow the most reliable conclusions. STUDY DESIGN AND SETTING: In a systematic review of prognostic marker MYC-N in neuroblastoma, meta-analysis for overall survival (OS) and disease-free survival (DFS) was of interest. Only 17 published studies enabled extraction of both outcome estimates, 25 enabled only DFS, 39 enabled only OS, and 70 enabled neither outcome. Unidentified unpublished studies may also exist. We assessed the robustness of the pooled estimates to the problem of missing information. Because OS and DFS estimates seemed to be related, we used the known outcome estimates to predict estimates known to be missing, and combined this approach with existing methods for assessing dissemination bias. RESULTS: The results of the sensitivity analyses suggested that the original meta-analysis results were likely to be an overestimate of the true OS and DFS effect-sizes but strengthened the belief that MYC-N is a potentially important prognostic marker in neuroblastoma. CONCLUSION: Sensitivity analyses in meta-analysis allow more appropriate and reliable conclusions when problems such as unavailable estimates and dissemination bias are present.