CIK/DC-CIK cell therapy plus chemotherapy improves overall survival in patients with gastric cancer
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Key Takeaway
Note that CIK/DC-CIK cell therapy plus chemotherapy improved overall survival in gastric cancer patients (HR 0.60).
This meta-analysis evaluated the efficacy of CIK/DC-CIK cell therapy combined with chemotherapy compared to chemotherapy alone for patients with gastric cancer. The analysis included data from 22 trials involving a total of 2,149 patients, with 1,047 patients included in the overall survival (OS) analysis.
The primary finding was a significant benefit in overall survival for the combination therapy group compared to the chemotherapy-only group. The meta-analysis reported a hazard ratio of 0.60 (95% CI 0.48 to 0.75). Secondary outcomes such as disease-free survival, progression-free survival, and T-lymphocyte subsets were also assessed but specific pooled values were not provided in the summary data.
A limitation noted is that only 13 of the 22 trials were included in the quantitative synthesis. Safety data for adverse events were summarized descriptively, though specific rates for serious adverse events or treatment discontinuations were not reported. Clinical application should consider these results as an association from a meta-analysis of clinical trials.
View Original Abstract ↓
BackgroundCytokine-induced killer cell (CIK) cell therapy shows promising antitumor effects in gastric cancer (GC). Given variability in clinical outcomes across studies, a systematic review and meta-analysis was conducted to assess overall safety and efficacy.MethodsThree databases (PubMed, Scopus, and Web of Science) were searched for studies evaluating the safety and efficacy of CIK/dendritic cell-cytokine-induced killer cell (DC-CIK) cell therapy in gastric cancer. Time-to-event outcomes (OS, DFS, PFS) were synthesized using hazard ratios (HRs); fixed time-point survival effects from 6 months to 5 years were additionally summarized in supplementary analyses. Fixed- or random-effects models were applied as appropriate. Publication bias was examined using Begg’s test and funnel plots, and robustness was explored with the Trim-and-Fill method. Safety and secondary outcomes (e.g., adverse events and T-lymphocyte subsets) were summarized descriptively.ResultsA total of 22 trials including 2,149 patients were included. After risk-of-bias assessment, 13 studies were included in the quantitative synthesis. Pooled HRs showed significant benefits of CIK/DC-CIK plus chemotherapy compared with chemotherapy alone: OS (9 studies; 1,047 patients) HR 0.60 (95% CI 0.48–0.75; p
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