| OBJECTIVE: In the present study, correlations between the expressions of the target molecules with clinical outcomes were analyzed, to determine the relationships between CD44, CD44v6, and CD44~+/CD24~- expression and breast cancer survival.METHODs: We systematically searched PubMed, EBSCO, and the Cochrane Library for related studies until December 2015. Hazard ratio(HR) and the 95%confidence intervals(CI) were used to assess the impact. Stata, version 12.0 software(Stata Corporation, College Station, TX, USA) was used in this meta-analysis.Subgroup analyses were performed to estimate the associations between CD44 or CD44v6+ or CD44~+/CD24~- tumor phenotypes and clinical prognoses of breast cancer using immunohistochemical staining.RESULTs: Twenty-two studies were included and 4027 samples were selected for the assessment of prognostic values. The random effects model showed that CD44 expression was not significantly different with DFS(HR=1.15, 95%CI=0.75–1.75) or overall survival(OS)(HR=0.91, 95%CI=0.61–1.35). The difference between the OS rate(HR=1.93,95%CI=1.05–3.55), and CD44v6 expression was significantly associated with the random effects model(I2=88%, P<0.001). CD44~+/CD24~- tumor cells were significantly associated with the OS rate(HR=1.72,95%CI=1.05–2.81), using the random-effects model.CONCLUSION: Our meta-analysis strongly suggests that CD44 expression is not a prognostic indicator in patients with breast cancer, while CD44v6 expression and CD44~+/CD24~- have prognostic values in breast cancer patients. |
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