The clinicopathological and prognostic significance of P27kip in hepatocellular carcinoma patients: a systemic review and meta-analysis

Abstract Objectives P27kip is a cyclin-dependent kinase inhibitor that has gained importance as a biomarker in human malignant tumors. However, the potential role of P27kip in hepatocellular carcinoma remains unclear. The aim of this meta-analysis was to explore whether P27kip has prognostic and clinicopathological roles in hepatocellular carcinoma patients. Methods/Materials: An electronic search based on three databases, PubMed, Embase, and Web of Science, was performed to select a sufficient number of studies. Pooled hazard ratio (HR) and odds ratio (OR) were used as estimates to investigate the association among P27kip expression, prognosis and clinicopathological features. Results In total, we identified 18 studies with 1774 hepatocellular carcinoma patients. The result derived from four studies revealed a significant positive association between lower P27kip levels and shorter overall survival (HR=0.550, 95% CI: 0.464∼0.652, P Conclusions This analysis suggests a strong association among P27kip underexpression, poorer prognosis and aggressive progression of hepatocellular carcinoma in patients. P27kip may be a tumor suppressor for predicting the progression and survival outcome in patients with hepatocellular carcinomas.