ArticleInternational journal of clinical oncology2024
PD-L1 expression and microsatellite instability (MSI) in cancer of unknown primary site.
Article in International journal of clinical oncology, 2024. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 4 papers.
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
4 citing papers in PubMed, 6 citations in OpenAlex.
- Study on predicting microsatellite instability in rectal cancer using TCancer imaging : the official publication of the International Cancer Imaging Society · 2026Article
- Successful Identification and Treatment of Cancer of Unknown Primary Originating From Gastric Cancer Using Comprehensive Genomic Profiling and Immune Checkpoint Inhibitor Therapy: A Case Report.Cancer reports (Hoboken, N.J.) · 2025Article
- Bibliometric analysis of immunotherapy for esophageal cancer: 2004-2024.Frontiers in oncology · 2025Article
- Immune-checkpoint gene expression and BCG response in non-muscle invasive bladder cancer.Translational oncology · 2024Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
10 authors at 1 institution in 2 countries.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundCancer of unknown primary site (CUP) is a heterogeneous group of tumors for which the origin remains unknown. Clinical outcomes might be influenced by regulatory processes in its microenvironment. Microsatellite instability (MSI) is a predictive biomarker for cancer immunotherapy and its status, as well as co-occurrence with PD-L1 expression, is poorly evaluated. We aim to evaluate the expression of PD-L1 and the status of MSI in CUP and their possible associations with clinical-pathological features.
methodsThe combined positive score (CPS) PD-L1 expression was evaluated by immunohistochemistry. MSI status was assessed using a hexa-plex marker panel by polymerase chain reaction followed by fragment analysis.
resultsAmong the 166 cases, MSI analysis was conclusive in 120, with two cases being MSI positive (1.6%). PD-L1 expression was positive in 18.3% of 109 feasible cases. PD-L1 expression was significantly associated with non-visceral metastasis and a dominance of nodal metastasis. The median overall survival (mOS) was 3.7 (95% CI 1.6-5.8) months and patients who expressed PD-L1 achieved a better mOS compared to those who did not express PD-L1 (18.7 versus 3.0 months, p-value: < .001). ECOG-PS equal to or more than two and PD-L1 expression were independent prognostic factors in multivariate analysis (2.37 and 0.42, respectively).
conclusionPD-L1 is expressed in a subset (1/5) of patients with CUP and associated with improved overall survival, while MSI is a rare event. There is a need to explore better the tumor microenvironment as well as the role of immunotherapy to change such a bad clinical outcome.
Indexed as
Identifiers
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.