Circulating ghrelin levels in patients with gastric cancer: a systematic review and meta-analysis

BACKGROUND: Ghrelin plays a critical role in regulating energy metabolism and homeostasis. The association between circulating ghrelin levels and gastric cancer has not been systematically analyzed. OBJECTIVE: This work explored the association between circulating ghrelin levels and gastric cancer. METHODS: The literature search for relevant articles published until November 2022 was performed using PubMed, Cochrane Library, EMBASE, and Web of Science with the keywords “ghrelin” and “gastric cancer”. Standardized mean differences (SMD) with 95% confidence intervals were used to measure the effectiveness. We assessed pooled data by use of a random-effects model. RESULTS: Of 5,302 identified studies, nine were included (N=3,196 participants). Circulating ghrelin levels were lower in gastric cancer patients (SMD=-0.255, 95%CI: -0.528 to 0.017, P < 0.00001), but with high heterogeneity (I(2 )= 88.8%). CONCLUSION: The circulating ghrelin levels in patients with gastric cancer were lower than in controls. However, there was heterogeneity among results; therefore, studies with larger sample sizes are recommended.