The prognostic value of HOXA13 in solid tumors: A meta-analysis

Purpose: The prognostic value of homeobox (HOX) A13 (HOXA13) in cancer remains uncertain due to limitations of sample size and discrete outcome in previous studies. We performed this meta-analysis to explore the prognostic effect of HOXA13 in patients with solid tumors.

Methods: PubMed, Embase, and Web of Science were searched to identify eligible studies. Hazard ratios (HR) with 95% confidence interval (95%CI) and clinicopathological factors were extracted. Subgroup analysis according to cancer type, sample size and analysis method were also performed.

Results: A total of 844 patients with solid tumor from 9 eligible studies were incorporated in the meta-analysis. We found that high HOXA13 expression level was significantly associated with poor overall survival (OS) in human cancer (HR = 2.23; 95%CI: 1.74-2.85), and significantly related to poorer histological grade (odds ratio (OR) = 2.03, 95%CI: 1.40-2.96), positive lymph node metastasis (OR = 1.96, 95%CI: 1.26-3.02) and more advanced tumor-node-metastasis (TNM) stage (OR = 3.92, 95%CI: 2.46-6.22).

Conclusion: Our meta-analysis suggests that HOXA13 might be a valuable biomarker of poor prognosis and a potential therapeutic target for human solid tumors.