Table 2. Results of this meta-analysis.
| Outcome | No.of studies | No.of patients | HR/OR (95% CI) | P | Heterogeneity | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| I2(%) | p-value | |||||
| OS | 7 | 503 | 2.422 (1.858–3.157) | < 0.001 | 0 | 0.837 |
| DTC [12, 13, 15, 16, 20] | 5 | 381 | 2.423 (1.786–3.288) | < 0.001 | 0 | 0.694 |
| Others [17, 19] | 2 | 122 | 2.418 (1.416–4.129) | = 0.001 | 0 | 0.462 |
| LNM [12–14, 19, 20] | 5 | 361 | 3.244 (2.039–5.160) | < 0.001 | 0 | 0.711 |
| TNM [12–14, 18–20] | 6 | 391 | 3.870 (2.529–5.923) | < 0.001 | 21.3 | 0.273 |
OS: overall survival; LNM: lymph node metastasis; TNM: cancer TNM stage; DTC: digestive tract cancer; Others: other cancer types; HR: hazard ratios; OR: odds ratios; No: number; CI: confidence interval.