Circulating HSPs Levels and Risk of Human Gastrointestinal Related Cancers: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis

• Published in: International journal of peptide research and therapeutics Vol. 26; no. 3; pp. 1363 - 1370
• Main Authors: Ahmadpour, Fathollah, Mousavi Maleki, Masoumeh Sadat, Mahmoodi, Sadrollah, Rasouli, Hamid Reza
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Dordrecht Springer Netherlands 01.09.2020; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: Animal Anatomy; Biochemistry; Biomedical and Life Sciences; Cancer; Colorectal cancer; Colorectal carcinoma; Heat shock proteins; Histology; Life Sciences; Liver cancer; Meta-analysis; Molecular Medicine; Morphology; Overexpression; Pancreatic cancer; Pharmaceutical Sciences/Technology; Pharmacology/Toxicology; Polymer Sciences; Hepatocellular carcinoma; Stress protein; Heat shock protein; Colorectal cancer
• ISSN: 1573-3149; 1573-3904
• DOI: 10.1007/s10989-019-09942-z

Heat shock proteins (HSPs) have over-expression in the human malignancies. However, many studies reported inconsistent results. The study aimed to perform a meta-analysis to assess the association between circulating serum HSPs levels and gastrointestinal related cancer risk (GICs). An electronic literature search was conducted for relevant studies in health-related databases up to July 2018. Data related to the standard mean difference (SMD) were collected and analyzed. Summary SMD with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) was estimated using a fixed-effect model. Funnel plot and Egger’s linear regression test were also used for evaluation of publication bias. A total of 11 studies (10 papers) with 584 cases and 576 healthy controls were included. The pooled analysis showed that serum HSPs levels were significantly elevated in subjects with different malignancies than healthy control group (SMD = 0.626; 95% CI 0.507–0.746; P > 0.001). Subgroup analyses by cancer type, HSPs type and sample size also revealed a positive correlation between serum HSPs levels and GICs risk. Elevated serum level of HSPs were strongly associated with colorectal cancer (SMD = 0.696; 95% CI 0.478–0.914; P > 0.001) and pancreatic cancer (SMD = 0.677; 95% CI 0.421–0.933; P > 0.001). This meta-analysis indicated a significant association between high circulating HSPs levels and increased risk of different gastrointestinal malignancies. HSPs may represent a potential biomarker for early detection of cancer patients who may benefit from preventive treatment.