CXCR3 is a prognostic marker and a potential target for patients with solid tumors: a meta-analysis

OBJECTIVE: To deeply verify the clinical significance of CXCR3 in prediction of cancer patients’ prognosis. DATA SOURCES: We performed a meta-analysis including 12 studies searched from PubMed, Web of Science, Embase, and Cochrane databases. A total of 1,751 patients were used to analyze the association between CXCR3 and patients’ prognosis, based on either overall survival or time to tumor progression. STUDY SELECTION: Studies evaluating CXCR3 expression for predicting prognosis in human solid tumors were included. RESULTS: It showed that patients with higher expression of CXCR3 had significantly shorter OS (pooled hazard ratio =2.315, 95% CI: 1.162–4.611, P=0.017). In addition, higher CXCR3 expression was associated with distant metastasis (yes vs no: pooled relative ratio [RR] =1.828, 95% CI: 1.140–2.931, P=0.012) in solid tumors and indicated advanced tumor stage (III/IV vs I/II, RR =2.656, 95% CI: 1.809–3.900, P<0.001) and lymph node metastasis (yes vs no: RR =2.28, 95% CI: 1.61–3.25, P<0.001) in colorectal cancer. CONCLUSION: Our study highlights the role of CXCR3 as a potential prognostic marker and a promising therapeutic target in solid tumors.