The Prognostic Value of Decreased LKB1 in Solid Tumors: A Meta-Analysis

Liver kinase B1 (LKB1) is a protein kinase that regulates the growth, integrity and polarity of mammalian cells. Recent studies have reported the prognostic value of decreased LKB1 expression in different tumors. However, the results of these studies remain controversial. Therefore, this meta-analysis was performed to more accurately estimate the role of decreased LKB1 in the prognostication of human solid tumors. A systematic literature search in the electronic databases PubMed, Embase, Web of Science and CNKI (updated to October 15, 2015) was performed to identify eligible studies. The overall survival (OS), relapse-free survival (RFS), disease-free survival (DFS) and clinicopathological features data were collected from these studies. The hazard ratios (HRs), odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were calculated and pooled with a random-effects models using Stata12.0 software. A total of 14 studies covering 1915 patients with solid tumors were included in this meta-analysis. Decreased LKB1 was associated with poorer OS in both the univariate (HR: 1.86, 95%CI: 1.42-2.42, P