Background: BIRC5 is associated with the prognosis of a variety of tumors. This meta-analysis aimed to identify whether BIRC5 is associated with the prognosis of lung adenocarcinoma (LUAD).
Research design and methods: We conducted an in-depth review of seven Chinese and English databases and two high-throughput sequencing databases according to inclusion and exclusion criteria to find relevant studies. The pooled standardized mean differences (SMDs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) for the associations between the BIRC5 expression level and clinicopathological characteristics were calculated, and the pooled hazard ratios (HRs) and 95% CIs were calculated to estimate associations between the BIRC5 expression level and survival outcomes.
Results: In total, 17 studies involving 2887 LUAD patients whose BIRC5 expression level was known were included in this meta-analysis. The BIRC5 expression level was higher in younger patients, males, and smokers and correlated with advanced AJCC, T and N stages but not M stage. A high BIRC5 expression level also correlated with poor overall survival (OS) and progression-free survival (PFS). There was no publication bias in this study.
Conclusions: This meta-analysis indicates that BIRC5 is a significant biomarker for a poor prognosis and poor clinicopathological outcomes in patients with LUAD.
Keywords: BIRC5; TCGA; lung adenocarcinoma; meta-analysis; prognosis.