Down-regulated E-cadherin expression is associated with poor five-year overall survival in bone and soft tissue sarcoma: results of a meta-analysis.

PURPOSE

To conduct a meta-analysis to evaluate the prognostic role of E-cadherin expression in bone and soft tissue sarcomas.

METHODS

The PubMed, EMBASE, and Web of Science databases were searched using terms related to E-cadherin, sarcoma, and prognosis for all articles published in English before March 2014. Pooled effect was calculated from the available data to evaluate the association between negative E-cadherin expression and 5-year overall survival and tumor clinicopathological features in sarcoma patients. Pooled odds ratios (OR) and risk ratios (RR) with 95% confidence intervals (CI) were calculated using a fixed-effects model.

RESULT

Eight studies met the selection criteria and reported on 812 subjects. A total of 496 subjects showed positive E-cadherin expression (59.9%). Negative E-cadherin expression in bone and soft tissue sarcomas was correlated with lower 5-year overall survival (OR = 3.831; 95% CI: 2.246-6.534), and was associated with higher clinical stage (RR = 1.446; 95% CI: 1.030-2.028) and with male sex (RR = 0.678; 95% CI: 0.493-0.933).

CONCLUSION

In the E-cadherin negative group, 5-year overall survival was significantly worse than in the E-cadherin positive group. However, further studies are required to confirm these results.