SATB1 overexpression correlates with gastrointestinal neoplasms invasion and metastasis: a meta-analysis for Chinese population

BACKGROUND: Gastrointestinal neoplasm (GIN) is the most common neoplasm in China. The global chromatin organizer SATB1 (special AT-rich sequence binding protein 1) is aberrantly expressed in multiple human neoplasms. We conducted this meta-analysis to investigate whether the invasion and metastasis of GIN correlates with SATB1 levels in tumor tissues in Chinese patients. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Eligible studies were identified through multiple search strategies in the databases PubMed, Embase, Medline, CNKI, and WANFANG, and the relevant clinicopathological data were extracted. Data were pooled using the Mantel-Haenszel fixed-effects or DerSimonian-Laid random-effects model. RESULTS: Fourteen studies consisting of 1622 patients were included. There were 3, 3, and 8 studies that evaluated esophageal, gastric, and colorectal cancers, respectively. The overall mean percentage of patients with elevated SATB1 levels was 47.84%. Among patients with GIN, SATB1 overexpression was associated with depth of invasion (T stage: RR 1.27, 95% CI 1.18–1.36, P = 0.000), regional lymph node metastasis (N stage: RR 1.51, 95% CI 1.22–1.87, P = 0.000), and distant metastasis (M stage: RR 2.54, 95% CI 1.46–4.41, P = 0.001). The tumor type most closely linked with invasion and metastasis in GIN was gastric cancer (RR for T stage: 1.64, RR for N stage: 1.68, RR for M stage: 3.15). CONCLUSIONS: invasion and metastasis of GIN in Chinese patients correlates with SATB1 overexpression in tumor tissues, most profoundly in gastric cancer.