Evidence map›Paper›PMID 32504183›Full record

SynthesisEuropean journal of clinical pharmacology2020

Personalised medicine and the decision to withhold chemotherapy in early breast cancer with intermediate risk of recurrence - a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Susanna M Wallerstedt, Astrid Nilsson Ek, Roger Olofsson Bagge, Anikó Kovács, Annika Strandell, Barbro Linderholm

Open access · hybridAbstract readMeta-AnalysisSystematic Review
In one paragraph

Synthesis in European journal of clinical pharmacology, 2020. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 3 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
3citing papers in PubMed
0.2field-weighted citation impact, top 57% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

3 citing papers in PubMed, 3 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Article
  2. Article
  3. Review
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

6 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.

Susanna M WallerstedtHTA-centrum, Sahlgrenska University Hospital, Region Västra Götaland, Gothenburg, Sweden. susanna.wallerstedt@pharm.gu.se.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7238-1680
Astrid Nilsson EkDepartment of Oncology, Sahlgrenska University Hospital, Gothenburg, Sweden.
Roger Olofsson BaggeSahlgrenska Cancer Center, Department of Surgery, Sahlgrenska Academy, University of Gothenburg, Gothenburg, Sweden.
Anikó KovácsDepartment of Clinical Pathology, Sahlgrenska University Hospital, Gothenburg, Sweden.
Annika StrandellHTA-centrum, Sahlgrenska University Hospital, Region Västra Götaland, Gothenburg, Sweden.
Barbro LinderholmDepartment of Oncology, Sahlgrenska University Hospital, Gothenburg, Sweden.
Sahlgrenska University Hospital · SE

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

purposeTo assess the evidence for decision making, at the health care and the patient levels, regarding the use of gene expression assays to inform chemotherapy decisions in breast cancer patients with intermediate clinical risk of recurrence.

methodsSystematic literature searches were performed (January 2002-April 2020) in Medline, Embase, PubMed, Cochrane Library, PsycINFO and HTA databases. INCLUSION CRITERIA: patients (P) were individuals with post-surgical breast cancer at intermediate clinical risk of recurrence; intervention (I)/comparison (C) was (i) use of, versus no use of, a gene expression assay and (ii) withholding versus providing chemotherapy; outcomes (O) were overall survival (OS), health-related quality of life (HRQL), and recurrence. Randomised controlled trials (RCTs) and non-RCTs were included. Random-effects meta-analyses were performed where possible.

resultsThree inconclusive non-RCTs, respectively, compared OS and recurrence with and without a gene expression assay. No studies investigated HRQL. Regarding the comparison withholding versus providing chemotherapy based on a gene expression assay, one RCT and four non-RCTs evaluated OS. In the RCT, 93.9% (I) versus 93.8% (C) were alive at 9 years. Three RCTs and seven non-RCTs evaluated recurrence. Three RCTs could be pooled regarding distant recurrence; 4.29% versus 3.88% had such an event (risk ratio: 1.12 (95% confidence interval: 0.90 to 1.39).

conclusionRegarding the use of gene expression assays in breast cancer, evidence on patient effects, informing patient-level chemotherapy decision making, is available. However, evidence for prioritisation at the overall health care level, i.e. use of, versus no use of, such assays, is largely lacking.

Indexed as

Decision MakingAntineoplastic AgentsBreast NeoplasmsFemaleGene Expression Regulation, NeoplasticHumansNeoplasm Recurrence, LocalPrecision MedicineQuality of LifeRandomized Controlled Trials as TopicSurvival RateAntineoplastic AgentsBreast cancerGene expression assayMeta-analysisOverall survivalRecurrenceSystematic review

Identifiers

PMID32504183
PMCPMC7419442
OpenAlexW3033364104

What Socratic holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the Socratic graph.