Abstract
BackgroundTo date, many studies have shown that microRNAs (miRNA) exhibit altered expression in various cancers and may play an important role as prognostic biomarker of cancers. The present meta-analysis summarizes the recent advances in the use of microRNA-21 (miR-21) in the assessment of colorectal cancer and analyzes the prognostic role of miR-21 for survival outcome.Methodology/Principal FindingsThe present meta-analysis was performed by searching PubMed through multiple search strategies. Data were extracted from studies comparing overall survival (OS) in patients with colorectal cancer who showed higher expression of miR-21 than similar patients. Pooled hazard ratios (HRs) of miR-21 for survival and 95% confidence intervals (CI) were calculated. Seven studies with a total of 1174 patients were included this meta-analysis. For overall survival (OS), the pooled hazard ratio (HR) of higher miR-21 expression in colorectal cancer was 1.76 (95% CI: 1.34–2.32, P=0.000). After elimination of heterogeneity, the pooled HR was 2.32 (95% CI: 1.82–2.97, P=0.000), which was found to significantly predict poorer survival. The subgroup analysis suggested that elevated miR-21 level and patients’ survival correlated with III/IV stage (HR=5.35, 95% CI: 3.73–7.66).Conclusions/SignificanceThe present findings suggest that high expression of miR-21 might predict poor prognosis in patients with colorectal cancer.
Highlights
Colorectal cancer (CRC) is the third most common cancer in humans, its incidence lagging behind only prostate cancer in men, breast cancer in women, and lung and bronchus cancer
Genes associated with TP53 mutations [2], KRAS mutations [3,4], BRAF mutations [4,5], and defective DNA mismatch repair [6] have been investigated to confirm the prognostic and survival-predictive of CRC, the clinical use of these markers requires further research
The search strategy used the following terms variably combined by “microRNA-21,” ‘‘miR-21,” ‘‘colon,’’ ‘‘colorectal,” “rectum,” “cancer,” “carcinoma,” “prognosis,” and “prognostic.” Eligible studies included in this meta-analysis met the following criteria: (i) They had to discuss patients with colon cancer or rectal cancer; (ii) They had to measure the miR-21 expression in tumor tissue or serum; and (iii) They had to investigate the overall survival outcome or the correlation between miR-21 expression and the clinical variables. (iv) The method of miR-21 detection must be same
Summary
Colorectal cancer (CRC) is the third most common cancer in humans, its incidence lagging behind only prostate cancer in men, breast cancer in women, and lung and bronchus cancer. The incidence and mortality of CRC have tended to decrease in the United States, but new cases and deaths in developed countries are still much higher than developing countries. The present meta-analysis summarizes the recent advances in the use of microRNA-21 (miR-21) in the assessment of colorectal cancer and analyzes the prognostic role of miR-21 for survival outcome. Data were extracted from studies comparing overall survival (OS) in patients with colorectal cancer who showed higher expression of miR-21 than similar patients. For overall survival (OS), the pooled hazard ratio (HR) of higher miR-21 expression in colorectal cancer was 1.76 (95% CI: 1.34–2.32, P=0.000). Conclusions/Significance: The present findings suggest that high expression of miR-21 might predict poor prognosis in patients with colorectal cancer
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