Meta-Analysis
Copyright ©The Author(s) 2023. Published by Baishideng Publishing Group Inc. All rights reserved.
World J Gastrointest Oncol. Dec 15, 2023; 15(12): 2212-2224
Published online Dec 15, 2023. doi: 10.4251/wjgo.v15.i12.2212
Prognostic value of T cell immunoglobulin and mucin-domain containing-3 expression in upper gastrointestinal tract tumors: A meta-analysis
Jing-Jing Yan, Bing-Bing Liu, Yan Yang, Meng-Ru Liu, Han Wang, Zhen-Quan Deng, Zhi-Wei Zhang
Jing-Jing Yan, Bing-Bing Liu, Yan Yang, Meng-Ru Liu, Han Wang, College of Clinical Medicine, Hebei University of Engineering, Handan 056000, Hebei Province, China
Zhen-Quan Deng, Department of Oncology, Handan First Hospital, Handan 056002, Hebei Province, China
Zhi-Wei Zhang, Department of Oncology, Affiliated Hospital of Hebei University of Engineering, Handan 056000, Hebei Province, China
Author contributions: Zhang ZW conceptualized, designed, and revised the manuscript; Yan JJ searched the literature, collected the data, organized the data, and drafted the manuscript; Liu BB collected the data; Yang Y and Deng ZQ checked and collated the data; Liu MR and Wang H performed the statistical analyses; All authors approved the final version of the manuscript.
Supported by the Science and Technology Research Project of Colleges and Universities of Hebei Province, No. QN2020234; the Precision Medicine Joint Cultivation Fund Project of Natural Science Foundation of Hebei Province, No. H2021402007; the Clinical Medicine Talent Cultivation Project of Health Commission of Hebei Province, No. 2020; and the Medical Science Research Project of Health Commission of Hebei Province, No. 20211392.
Conflict-of-interest statement: The authors have no conflicts of interest to declare.
PRISMA 2009 Checklist statement: The authors have read the PRISMA 2009 checklist, and subsequently prepared and revised it.
Open-Access: This article is an open-access article that was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution NonCommercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: https://creativecommons.org/Licenses/by-nc/4.0/
Corresponding author: Zhi-Wei Zhang, MD, PhD, Attending Doctor, Department of Oncology, Affiliated Hospital of Hebei University of Engineering, No. 81 Congtai Road, Congtai District, Handan 056000, Hebei Province, China. zhangzw128@126.com
Received: August 12, 2023
Peer-review started: August 12, 2023
First decision: September 12, 2023
Revised: September 25, 2023
Accepted: October 16, 2023
Article in press: October 16, 2023
Published online: December 15, 2023
Processing time: 123 Days and 21.6 Hours
Abstract
BACKGROUND

There is a lack of robust prognostic markers for upper gastrointestinal (GI) tract cancers, including esophageal, gastric, and esophagogastric junction cancers. T cell immunoglobulin and mucin-domain containing-3 (TIM3) plays a key immunomodulatory role and is linked to the prognosis of various cancers. However, the significance of TIM3 in upper GI tract tumors is still uncertain.

AIM

To investigate the prognostic value of TIM3 expression in upper GI tract tumors.

METHODS

A literature search was conducted on the PubMed, Embase, and Web of Science databases for relevant studies published until June 2023. After screening and quality assessment, studies that met the criteria were included in the meta-analysis. Statistical methods were used for the pooled analysis to assess the association of TIM3 expression in upper GI tract tumors with the prognosis and clinicopathological parameters. The results were reported with the hazard ratio (HR) and 95% confidence interval (CI).

RESULTS

Nine studies involving 2556 patients with upper GI tract cancer were included. High TIM3 expression was associated with a worse prognosis in upper GI tract cancer (HR: 1.17, 95%CI: 1.01-1.36). Positive expression of TIM3 in gastric cancer was correlated with the T and N stage, but the difference was not statistically significant. However, TIM3 overexpression was significantly correlated with the TNM stage (odds ratio: 1.21, 95%CI: 0.63-2.33; P < 0.05). TIM3 expression showed no association with the other clinicopathological parameters.

CONCLUSION

High expression of TIM3 in the upper GI tract cancer is associated with a worse prognosis and advanced T or N stages, indicating its potential value as a prognostic biomarker. These findings may provide a basis for the personalized treatment of upper GI tract cancers.

Keywords: Immune checkpoint; T cell immunoglobulin-3; Upper gastrointestinal tract cancer; Overall survival; Clinicopathological features

Core Tip: Immune checkpoint receptor inhibitors have transformed cancer treatment in a wide range of tumor types, and T cell immunoglobulin and mucin-domain containing-3 (TIM3) is one of these immune checkpoint receptors. The study initially evaluated the survival-prognostic effect of TIM3 in upper gastrointestinal tract tumors by conducting a meta-analysis, aggregating data from several independent studies, and providing the latest comprehensive insights into the field. We believe that the results of this study will further advance immunotherapy and provide some value to future research.