ReviewOncology and therapy2023
Breast Cancer Survival Outcomes and Tumor-Associated Macrophage Markers: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.
Review in Oncology and therapy, 2023. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 50 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled 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.
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.
Who cites it
50 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 61 citations in OpenAlex.
- From tumor microenvironment orchestrators to actionable targets: a systematic review of TAM-targeted therapies in triple-negative breast cancer.International journal of clinical oncology · 2026Pooled it
- A FABulous approach to image human macrophages.European journal of nuclear medicine and molecular imaging · 2026Article
- Establishment of an MRI-Based Diagnostic Approach to Identify Critical Pulpal Inflammation Zones in a Rat Caries-Derived Pulpitis Model.International endodontic journal · 2026Article
- Selective Targeting of Immune Checkpoints HLA-G and CD47 Using Novel Dual Signaling Protein DSP216 Promotes Innate Anticancer Immunity.Advanced science (Weinheim, Baden-Wurttemberg, Germany) · 2026Article
- Explainable machine learning-guided integrated multiomics analysis reveals macrophage-driven immune suppression in breast cancer.Nature communications · 2026Article
- Chemotherapeutics as Immune Modulators for the Treatment of Triple-Negative Breast Cancer.Cancers · 2026Review
- The contribution of rare germline variants to the immune landscape of breast cancer.Genome medicine · 2026Article
- Article
- M2 type macrophages promote OSCC progress via conferring resistance to Erastin-induced ferroptosis.Scientific reports · 2026Article
- Extracellular vesicles from canine mammary tumor cells promote macrophage M2 polarization and enhance tumor progression.Veterinary research communications · 2026Article
- M2 macrophages predict response to neoadjuvant chemotherapy in triple negative breast cancer patients.Scientific reports · 2026Article
- Tumor microenvironment and key signaling pathways in breast cancer progression and therapy resistance: A review.Biomolecules & biomedicine · 2026Review
- Article
- Article
- The insider's perspective: The intracellular complosome and immune cell dynamics in cancer.Clinical and translational medicine · 2026Review
- Exosomal crosstalk between breast cancer cells and tumor-associated macrophages: mechanisms and therapeutic implications.Molecular biology reports · 2026Review
- Machine learning-driven identification and immunohistochemical validation of an integrated immune-inflammatory phenotype for disease-free survival stratification in breast cancer.Frontiers in immunology · 2026Article
- Spatial distribution and prognostic value of tumor-associated macrophages in head and neck squamous cell carcinomas.Frontiers in oncology · 2026Article
- Tumor-associated macrophages in cancer: from mechanisms to application.Molecular biomedicine · 2025Review
- Monocyte-to-lymphocyte ratio as a subtype-specific biomarker in breast cancer prognosis: a narrative review.Annals of medicine and surgery (2012) · 2025Review
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
4 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
introductionTumor-associated macrophages (TAMs) in breast cancer are associated with a poor prognosis. Early studies of TAMs were largely limited to the pan-macrophage marker CD68, however, more recently, an increasing number of studies have used CD163, a marker expressed by alternatively activated M2 macrophages and TAM subsets. We hypothesized that CD163-positive (CD163+) TAMs would be a better predictor of survival outcomes in breast cancer compared to CD68+ TAMs.
methodsWe performed a systematic literature search of trials (from 1900 to August 2020) reporting overall survival (OS) or progression-free survival (PFS), breast cancer-specific survival (BCSS), TAM phenotype, and density. Thirty-two studies with 8446 patients were included. Meta-analyses were carried out on hazard ratios (HRs) for survival outcomes of breast cancer patients with a high density of TAMs (CD68+ and/or CD163+) compared to a low density of TAMs.
resultsA high density of TAMs (CD68+ and/or CD163+) was associated with decreased OS (HR 1.69, 95% CI 1.37-2.07) and reduced PFS (HR 1.64; 95% CI 1.35-1.99). Subgrouping by CD marker type showed a lower OS for high density of CD163+ TAMs (HR 2.24; 95% CI 1.71-2.92) compared to a high density of CD68+ TAMs (HR 1.5; 95% CI 1.12-2). A high density of TAMs (CD68+ and/or CD163+) in triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) cases was associated with lower OS (HR 2.81, 95% CI 1.35-5.84).
conclusionCompared to CD68+ TAMs, a high density of CD163+ TAMs that express a similar phenotype to M2 macrophages are a better predictor of poor survival outcomes in breast cancer.
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What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
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.