Evidence map›Paper›PMID 36128737›Full record

SynthesisAnnals of medicine2022

Sex difference in response to non-small cell lung cancer immunotherapy: an updated meta-analysis.

Jiali Liang, Jiaze Hong, Xin Tang, Xinyi Qiu, Keying Zhu, Liyuan Zhou, Dina Guo

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

Synthesis in Annals of medicine, 2022. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 19 papers, 3 of them syntheses that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
19citing papers in PubMed, 3 pooled it
2.2field-weighted citation impact, top 10% 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

19 citing papers in PubMed, 3 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 22 citations in OpenAlex.

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  7. Sex-related differences in the efficacy and toxicity of cancer treatments.Clinical & translational oncology : official publication of the Federation of Spanish Oncology Societies and of the National Cancer Institute of Mexico · 2025
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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

7 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.

Jiali LiangThe First School of Clinical Medicine, Zhejiang Chinese Medical University, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China.
Jiaze HongThe Second School of Clinical Medicine, Zhejiang Chinese Medical University, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China.
Xin TangThe Second School of Clinical Medicine, Zhejiang Chinese Medical University, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China.
Xinyi QiuThe First School of Clinical Medicine, Zhejiang Chinese Medical University, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China.
Keying ZhuThe Second School of Clinical Medicine, Zhejiang Chinese Medical University, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China.
Liyuan ZhouThe Second School of Clinical Medicine, Zhejiang Chinese Medical University, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China.
Dina GuoDepartment of Infectious Diseases, Ningbo Yinzhou No.2 Hospital, Ningbo, Zhejiang, China.
Zhejiang Chinese Medical University · CNNingbo No. 2 Hospital · CN

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundStudying sex differences in the efficacy of immunotherapy may contribute to the practice of the precision medicine, especially in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), a kind of cancer with sexual bimorphism.

methodsPublished randomized controlled trials (RCTs), published by PubMed, Medline, Embase, and Scopus, before 15 June 2022, testing immunotherapy (CTLA-4 or PD-1/L1 inhibitor alone, combination or with chemotherapy) versus non-immunotherapy (receiving chemotherapy or placebo only) were included to assess different efficacy between males and females. The primary endpoint was overall survival (OS). This meta-analysis was registered with PROSPERO (CRD42022298439).

resultsSixteen RCTs, involving 10,155 patients with advanced NSCLC, was collected in this meta-analysis. The pooled HR comparing immunotherapy vs non-immunotherapy were 0.76 (95%CI 0.71-0.81) for males and 0.74 (95%CI 0.63-0.87) for females. The pooled HRs comparing immune-checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) plus chemotherapy versus chemotherapy were 0.79 (95%CI 0.70-0.89) for males and 0.63 (95%CI 0.42-0.92) for females. The pooled HRs comparing ICIs versus chemotherapy were 0.74 (95%CI 0.67-0.81) for males and 0.83 (95%CI 0.73-0.95) for females. In squamous NSCLC, the pooled HRs comparing immunotherapy vs non-immunotherapy were 0.73 (95%CI 0.58-0.91) for males and 0.74 (95%CI 0.37-1.48) for females. In non-squamous NSCLC, the pooled HRs comparing immunotherapy versus non-immunotherapy were 0.62 (95%CI 0.71-0.94) for males and 0.59 (95%CI 0.39-0.89) for females.

conclusionCompared to chemotherapy, immunotherapy can improve the prognosis of patients with advanced NSCLC. Meanwhile, there are sex differences in the efficacy of immunotherapy.KEY MESSAGECompared to chemotherapy, immunotherapy can improve the prognosis of patients with advanced NSCLC.The most interesting thing in this study is that immunotherapy showed significant sex differences in the treatment of squamous NSCLC.

Indexed as

Carcinoma, Non-Small-Cell LungLung NeoplasmsCTLA-4 AntigenFemaleHumansImmune Checkpoint InhibitorsMaleProgrammed Cell Death 1 ReceptorSex CharacteristicsCTLA-4 AntigenImmune Checkpoint InhibitorsProgrammed Cell Death 1 ReceptorImmunotherapymetanon-small cell lung cancerprognosissex

Identifiers

PMID36128737
PMCPMC9518269
OpenAlexW4296793761

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY-NC
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.