Evidence map›Paper›PMID 18510726›Full record

SynthesisBMC cancer2008

Meta-analysis confirms BCL2 is an independent prognostic marker in breast cancer.

Grace M Callagy, Mark J Webber, Paul D P Pharoah, Carlos Caldas

Open access · goldAbstract readMeta-AnalysisReview
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Synthesis in BMC cancer, 2008. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 101 papers, 10 of them syntheses that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
101citing papers in PubMed, 10 pooled it
4.2field-weighted citation impact, top 5% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

101 citing papers in PubMed, 10 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 194 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Pooled it
  2. Pooled it
  3. Pooled it
  4. Pooled it
  5. Pooled it
  6. Prognostic significance of VEGF-C immunohistochemical expression in breast cancer: a meta-analysis.Tumour biology : the journal of the International Society for Oncodevelopmental Biology and Medicine · 2014
    Pooled it
  7. Pooled it
  8. Prognostic value of cyclin E expression in breast cancer: a meta-analysis.Tumour biology : the journal of the International Society for Oncodevelopmental Biology and Medicine · 2013
    Pooled it
  9. Pooled it
  10. Pooled it
  11. Trial
  12. Trial
  13. Article
  14. Article
  15. Article
  16. Article
  17. Article
  18. Article
  19. Article
  20. Article

41 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

4 authors at 2 institutions in 2 countries.

Grace M CallagyDepartment of Pathology, National University of Ireland, Galway, Clinical Science Institute, Costello Road, Galway, Ireland. grace.callagy@nuigalway.ie
Mark J Webber
Paul D P Pharoah
Carlos Caldas
Cancer Research UK · GBGalway Clinic · IE

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundA number of protein markers have been investigated as prognostic adjuncts in breast cancer but their translation into clinical practice has been impeded by a lack of appropriate validation. Recently, we showed that BCL2 protein expression had prognostic power independent of current used standards. Here, we present the results of a meta-analysis of the association between BCL2 expression and both disease free survival (DFS) and overall survival (OS) in female breast cancer.

methodsReports published in 1994-2006 were selected for the meta-analysis using a search of PubMed. Studies that investigated the role of BCL2 expression by immunohistochemistry with a sample size greater than 100 were included. Seventeen papers reported the results of 18 different series including 5,892 cases with an average median follow-up of 92.1 months.

resultsEight studies investigated DFS unadjusted for other variables in 2,285 cases. The relative hazard estimates ranged from 0.85 - 3.03 with a combined random effects estimate of 1.66 (95%CI 1.25 - 2.22). The effect of BCL2 on DFS adjusted for other prognostic factors was reported in 11 studies and the pooled random effects hazard ratio estimate was 1.58 (95%CI 1.29-1.94). OS was investigated unadjusted for other variables in eight studies incorporating 3,910 cases. The hazard estimates ranged from 0.99-4.31 with a pooled estimate of risk of 1.64 (95%CI 1.36-2.0). OS adjusted for other parameters was evaluated in nine series comprising 3,624 cases and the estimates for these studies ranged from 1.10 to 2.49 with a pooled estimate of 1.37 (95%CI 1.19-1.58).

conclusionThe meta-analysis strongly supports the prognostic role of BCL2 as assessed by immunohistochemistry in breast cancer and shows that this effect is independent of lymph node status, tumour size and tumour grade as well as a range of other biological variables on multi-variate analysis. Large prospective studies are now needed to establish the clinical utility of BCL2 as an independent prognostic marker.

Indexed as

AdultAgedAge DistributionBiomarkers, TumorBreast NeoplasmsDisease-Free SurvivalFemaleHumansIncidenceMiddle AgedPredictive Value of TestsPrognosisProto-Oncogene Proteins c-bcl-2Risk AssessmentSensitivity and SpecificitySurvival AnalysisBiomarkers, TumorProto-Oncogene Proteins c-bcl-2

Identifiers

PMID18510726
PMCPMC2430210
OpenAlexW2099302662

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.