Yao Yang, Su Jie, Zhao Lei, Luo Na, Long Lihui, Zhu Xingmei
Department of Central Laboratory, The First Affiliated Hospital, Xi'an Medical University, Xi'an, Shaanxi 710077, PR China,
Department of Molecular Physiology and Biophysics, Holden Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of Iowa Carver College of Medicine, Iowa City, IA 52242, USA.
Cancer Manag Res. 2019 Jan 3;11:455-465. doi: 10.2147/CMAR.S188347. eCollection 2019.
NIMA-related kinase 2 (NEK2) has been reported to be overexpressed in various types of cancer and correlated with poor prognosis. The role(s) of NEK2 in cancer, however, is still uncertain. The aim of this study was to evaluate the prognostic value of NEK2 in human tumors.
A comprehensive literature search was performed for PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, and CNKI databases, and eligible studies were included based on the inclusion and exclusion criteria. A meta-analysis of the included studies was then carried out.
Fifteen studies with 3,280 cancer patients were included in the present meta-analysis. All publications were of moderate to high quality, and had no significant heterogeneity ( , =0.03) or publication bias was discovered. The results showed that a high NEK2 level was associated with shorter overall survival (OS) in patients with various types of cancers (pooled HR=1.72, 95% CI 1.49-2.00, <0.00001). However, the disease-free survival (DFS) had no significant association with NEK2 level (HR=1.13, 95% CI: 0.29-4.38, =0.85). In the subgroup analyses, high NEK2 level was correlated with an increased risk of poor OS in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HR=1.62, 95% CI: 1.25-2.10, =0.02) and lung cancer (HR=2.18, 95% CI: 1.40-3.38, =0.0005). However, other factors, including sample size, follow-up period, HR estimation method, and country, also affect the association between NEK2 expression and OS. Analysis of clinicopathological parameters further showed that increased NEK2 level was correlated with younger age, male gender, better tumor differentiation, and lower number of tumor nodules.
The results of this study indicated that increased expression of NEK2 was associated with unfavorable survival of cancer patients and that NEK2 could be used as a prognostic predictor for cancers.
据报道，NIMA相关激酶2（NEK2）在多种癌症中过表达，并与预后不良相关。然而，NEK2在癌症中的作用仍不明确。本研究旨在评估NEK2在人类肿瘤中的预后价值。
对PubMed、Embase、Web of Science和CNKI数据库进行全面的文献检索，并根据纳入和排除标准纳入符合条件的研究。然后对纳入的研究进行荟萃分析。
本荟萃分析纳入了15项研究，共3280例癌症患者。所有出版物质量中等至高，未发现显著异质性（I² = 0.03）或发表偏倚。结果显示，NEK2水平高与各类癌症患者的总生存期（OS）较短相关（合并HR = 1.72，95%CI 1.49 - 2.00，P < 0.00001）。然而，无病生存期（DFS）与NEK2水平无显著关联（HR = 1.13，95%CI：0.29 - 4.38，P = 0.85）。在亚组分析中，NEK2水平高与肝细胞癌患者（HR = 1.62，95%CI：1.25 - 2.10，P = 0.02）和肺癌患者（HR = 2.18，95%CI：1.40 - 3.38，P = 0.0005）的OS不良风险增加相关。然而，其他因素，包括样本量、随访期、HR估计方法和国家，也会影响NEK2表达与OS之间的关联。临床病理参数分析进一步表明，NEK2水平升高与年龄较小、男性、肿瘤分化较好和肿瘤结节数量较少相关。
本研究结果表明，NEK2表达增加与癌症患者的不良生存相关，NEK2可作为癌症的预后预测指标。
