Abstract
BackgroundCirculating tumor cells (CTCs) detection has previously been used for diagnosing gastric cancer. However, the previous studies failed to make an agreement whether the detection of CTCs contributes to the diagnosis of gastric cancer.MethodsA systematic review and meta-analysis was performed to evaluate the overall accuracy of CTCs detection for diagnosing gastric cancer. PubMed, Embase and the Wanfang database were searched in all languages published up to Oct 2012. The pooled sensitivity (SEN), specificity (SPE), positive and negative likelihood ratios (PLR and NLR, respectively), diagnostic odds ratio (DOR) and summary receiver operating characteristic (sROC) curve were calculated to evaluate the overall test performance.ResultsTwenty studies were included in this systematic review and meta-analysis. The diagnostic value of CTCs detection for the gastric cancer was calculated to evaluate the overall test performance. The summary estimates of The pooled sensitivity, specificity, positive and negative likelihood ratios, diagnostic odds ratio were 0.42 (95% confidence interval (CI), 0.21-0.67), 0.99 (95% CI, 0.96-1.00), 58.2 (95% CI, 9.8-345.9), 0.58 (95% CI, 0.38-0.89), and 100 (95% CI, 15–663), respectively. The summary receiver operating characteristic curve was 0.97 (95% CI, 0.95–0.98). Deek’s funnel plot asymmetry test found no evidence of study publication bias in the current study (P = 0.49).ConclusionThis systematic review suggests that CTCs detection alone cannot be recommended as a screening test for gastric cancer. However, it might be used as a noninvasive method for the confirmation of the gastric cancer diagnosis.
Highlights
Circulating tumor cells (CTCs) detection has previously been used for diagnosing gastric cancer
PubMed, Embase and the Wanfang database were searched in Oct 2012 using the strategy of AND (Gastric cancer or Gastric Neoplasms or Stomach Cancer) without time or language restrictions
This current study is the first meta-analysis focusing on the diagnostic value of CTCs detection in peripheral blood of gastric cancer patients
Summary
Circulating tumor cells (CTCs) detection has previously been used for diagnosing gastric cancer. Gastric cancer rates were about twice as high in males as in females. The highest gastric cancer incidence rates were reported in Eastern Asia, Eastern Europe, and South America and Generally, the current routine of the diagnosis is based on symptoms, signs, serum tests of tumor markers, radiology, and pathology. Most patients have advanced gastric cancer at the time of diagnosis [4]. Great improvements have been made recently in the treatment of gastric cancer, the high incidence of metastasis and recurrence continue to affect the clinical management [6]. To improve the clinical outcomes of patients with gastric cancer, new methods and techniques were developed to facilitate the diagnosis of this disease
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