Evidence map›Paper›PMID 41591683›Full record

SynthesisInternational journal of clinical oncology2026

Prevalence of sarcopenia in esophageal cancer patients receiving preoperative neoadjuvant therapy: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Mohamed Abosheisha, Mohamed Abdellatif, Muhammed Kandeel, Ahmed Alemam, Ahmad Asaad, Md Abdus Samad Hasan, Mustafa Alqasem, Abdelrahman Abdelaal, Momen Abdelglil, Mohamed Terra and 4 more

Abstract readSystematic ReviewMeta-Analysis
PubMed Publisher
In one paragraph

Synthesis in International journal of clinical oncology, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.

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0cells of the map it votes in
1citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
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

1 citing paper in PubMed.

  1. Review
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

14 authors.

Mohamed AbosheishaGeneral Surgery Department, Wirral University Teaching Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, Wirral, UK. Mohamed.Abosheisha@nhs.net.ORCID http://orcid.org/0009-0005-8498-0038
Mohamed AbdellatifGeneral Surgery Department, Leicester Royal Infirmary Hospital, University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Foundation Trust, Leicester, UK.
Muhammed KandeelHepatobiliary Surgery Department, Glenfield Hospital, University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Foundation Trust, Leicester, UK.
Ahmed AlemamGeneral Surgery Department, Leicester Royal Infirmary Hospital, University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Foundation Trust, Leicester, UK.
Ahmad AsaadGeneral Surgery Department, Mersey and West Lancashire Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, Southport, UK.
Md Abdus Samad HasanTrauma and Orthopedics Department, Chelsea and Westminster Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, London, UK.
Mustafa AlqasemGeneral Surgery Department, Northumbria NHS Foundation Trust, North Shields, UK.
Abdelrahman AbdelaalGeneral Surgery Department, Norfolk and Norwich University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, Norwich, UK.
Momen AbdelglilPediatric Surgery Department, Mansoura University Children's Hospital, Mansoura University Hospitals, Mansoura, Egypt.
Mohamed TerraFaculty of Medicine, Mansoura University, Mansoura, Egypt.
Ahmed SwealemTrauma and Orthopedics Department, North Bristol NHS Foundation Trust, Bristol, UK.
Mohamed IsmaielGeneral Surgery Department, University Hospital Limerick, Limerick, Ireland.
Jeremy WilsonGeneral Surgery Department, Wirral University Teaching Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, Wirral, UK.
Conor MageeGeneral Surgery Department, Wirral University Teaching Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, Wirral, UK.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundSarcopenia is a critical comorbidity in esophageal cancer patients undergoing neoadjuvant therapy (NAT), linked to poor surgical outcomes and survival. However, its reported prevalence varies widely, and a comprehensive synthesis of evidence is lacking.

objectiveTo systematically evaluate and quantify the prevalence of the sarcopenia disease in in patients known to be diagnosed with esophageal cancer and receiving preoperative neoadjuvant therapy and examine its association with clinical outcomes.

methodsFollowing PRISMA guidelines 2020, This systematic review and meta-analysis that was registered on PROSPERO (CRD420251109294), provides a comprehensive search through PubMed, SCOPUS, Web of Science, and the Cochrane Library to identify research papers reporting sarcopenia prevalence in esophageal cancer patients undergoing neoadjuvant chemotherapy or chemoradiotherapy. Pooled prevalence estimates and outcome associations were calculated using random-effects models. Subgroup and sensitivity analyses were performed to explore heterogeneity, and study quality was assessed using the Newcastle-Ottawa Scale.

resultsTwenty-six research studies comprising 3298 patients were included. The pooled prevalence of sarcopenia following neoadjuvant therapy was 48% (95% CI 38-58%), with considerable heterogeneity (I

conclusionsSarcopenia is highly prevalent among patients with esophageal cancer undergoing neoadjuvant therapy. Although sarcopenia was consistently associated with poorer overall survival, these findings are derived from heterogeneous definitions, variable assessment timing, and unadjusted outcome analyses, and should therefore be interpreted as associative rather than causal. Standardized diagnostic criteria, incorporation of muscle strength assessment, and prospective studies are required in future research.

Indexed as

Esophageal NeoplasmsNeoadjuvant TherapySarcopeniaHumansPrevalenceEsophageal cancerMeta-analysisNeoadjuvant therapySarcopeniaSurvival outcomes

Identifiers

PMID41591683

What OpenQuestion holds

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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.