SynthesisFrontiers in oncology2025
GDF-15 as a biomarker for diagnosis and prognosis of lung cancer: a meta-analysis.
Synthesis in Frontiers in oncology, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 2 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
2 citing papers in PubMed.
- Osteocyte-Derived GDF15 Promotes Paclitaxel Resistance, Tumor Growth, and Bone Microenvironment Regulation in Prostate Cancer.Current issues in molecular biology · 2026Article
- GDF15 Is Elevated in Eating Disorders and Is Involved in the Gut-Brain Axis via Ghrelin.European eating disorders review : the journal of the Eating Disorders Association · 2026Article
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.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Introduction: Due to the tendency of lung cancer to be diagnosed at advanced stages, many patients are not eligible for curative surgery. Identifying early detection and prognosis biomarkers is crucial for improving outcomes. This study explores the potential of Growth Differentiation Factor 15 (GDF-15) as a biomarker for these purposes. Methods: A thorough review and meta-analysis of literature from PubMed, Embase, the CENTRAL, and the CNKI was performed. We analyzed the diagnostic accuracy of GDF-15, focusing on its sensitivity, specificity, and AUC. Additionally, we investigated the association between three-year overall survival and GDF-15 levels in lung cancer patients. Our analysis included nine studies, encompassing 1296 patients with lung cancer and 1182 healthy controls. Results: GDF-15 showed high diagnostic performance with a sensitivity of 0.80 (95% Confidence Interval (CI): 0.71-0.87), specificity of 0.92 (95% CI: 0.85-0.96), diagnostic odds ratio of 45 (95% CI: 25-79), and an AUC of 0.93 (95% CI: 0.90-0.95). Moreover, the prognosis analysis revealed that the plasma GDF-15 levels were significantly higher in patients than controls (standardized mean difference: 2.91, CI 2.79-3.04 and P < 0.00001), and the odds ratio of 3-year overall survival rate was 4.05 (95% CI: 1.92-8.51 and P = 0.0002). Discussion: GDF-15 exhibits strong potential as both a diagnostic and prognostic biomarker in lung cancer, distinguishing effectively between patients and healthy individuals. These findings support its further exploration and potential integration into clinical practice. Systematic Review Registration: https://www.crd.york.ac.uk/PROSPERO/, identifier CRD42024519807.
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.