Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Meta-Analysis
. 2004 Dec 13;91(12):2018-25.
doi: 10.1038/sj.bjc.6602233.

Ki-67 expression and patients survival in lung cancer: systematic review of the literature with meta-analysis

B Martin  1 , M Paesmans, C Mascaux, T Berghmans, P Lothaire, A-P Meert, J-J Lafitte, J-P Sculier
Affiliations
Meta-Analysis

Ki-67 expression and patients survival in lung cancer: systematic review of the literature with meta-analysis

B Martin et al. Br J Cancer. .

Abstract

Among new biological markers that could become useful prognostic factors for lung carcinoma, Ki-67 is a nuclear protein involved in cell proliferation regulation. Some studies have suggested an association between Ki-67 and poor survival in lung cancer patients. In order to clarify this point, we have performed a systematic review of the literature, using the methodology already described by our Group, the European Lung Cancer Working Party. In total, 37 studies, including 3983 patients, were found to be eligible. In total, 49% of the patients were considered as having a tumour positive for the expression of Ki-67 according to the authors cutoff. In all, 29 of the studies dealt with non-small-cell lung carcinoma (NSCLC), one with small-cell carcinoma (SCLC), two with carcinoid tumours and five with any histology. In terms of survival results, Ki-67 was a bad prognosis factor for survival in 15 studies while it was not in 22. As there was no statistical difference in quality scores between the significant and nonsignificant studies evaluable for the meta-analysis, we were allowed to aggregate the survival results. The combined hazard ratio for NSCLC, calculated using a random-effects model was 1.56 (95% CI: 1.30-1.87), showing a worse survival when Ki-67 expression is increased. In conclusion, our meta-analysis shows that the expression of Ki-67 is a factor of poor prognosis for survival in NSCLC.

PubMed Disclaimer

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Results of the meta-analysis with all NSCLC studies. A hazard ratio (HR)>1 implies a worse survival for the group with no increased Ki-67 expression. The square size is proportional to the number of patients included in each study. The centre of the lozenge gives the combined HR for the meta-analysis and its extremities the 95% confidence interval.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Ahlgren G, Pedersen K, Lundberg S, Aus G, Hugosson J, Abrahamsson PA (1999) Tumor cell proliferation in prostate cancer after 3 months of neoadjuvant LHRH analogue treatment is a prognostic marker of recurrence after radical prostatectomy. Urology 54: 329–334 - PubMed
    1. Altman DG, Lausen B, Sauerbrei W, Schumacher M (1994) Dangers of using ‘optimal’ cutpoints in the evaluation of prognostic factors. J Natl Cancer Inst 86: 829–835 - PubMed
    1. Auperin A, Arriagada R, Pignon JP, Le Pechoux C, Gregor A, Stephens RJ, Kristjansen PE, Johnson BE, Ueoka H, Wagner H, Aisner J (1999) Prophylactic cranial irradiation for patients with small-cell lung cancer in complete remission. Prophylactic Cranial Irradiation Overview Collaborative Group. N Engl J Med 341: 476–484 - PubMed
    1. Bellotti M, Elsner B, Paez DL, Esteva H, Marchevsky AM (1997) Neural networks as a prognostic tool for patients with non-small cell carcinoma of the lung. Mod Pathol 10: 1221–1227 - PubMed
    1. Bohm J, Koch S, Gais P, Jutting U, Prauer HW, Hofler H (1996) Prognostic value of MIB-1 in neuroendocrine tumours of the lung. J Pathol 178: 402–409 - PubMed

Publication types