• Li Gu, Cheng-Di Wang, Chang Cao, Lin-Rui Cai, De-Hua Li, and Yu-Zhen Zheng.
• Department of Obstetrics, West China Women's and Children's Hospital.
• Medicine (Baltimore). 2019 Feb 1; 98 (5): e14094e14094.

BackgroundAccumulating evidence has demonstrated that leptin is associated to the tumorigenesis and progression of breast cancer (BC). However, these studies remain inconsistent. Thus, a meta-analysis was conducted to investigate the role of leptin in the patients with BC.MethodA systematic search in PubMed, Embase, ISI Web of Science, and Chinese National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI) databases was conducted up to September 1, 2017. The standardized mean difference (SMD) with 95% confidence interval (CI) was applied to pool the effect size. A funnel plot and Egger test were used to evaluate publication bias.ResultsFinally, 43 eligible studies were included in the current meta-analysis. Overall, serum leptin levels in BC cases were significantly higher compared with the controls (SMD = 0.61, P <.0001). When subgroup analyses were restricted to ethnicity and menstrual status, higher serum leptin concentration was also detected in patients with BC. Moreover, BC cases with body mass index (BMI) >25 indicated significantly higher serum leptin levels (SMD = 1.48, P = .034). Furthermore, the BC cases with lymph node metastases showed significantly higher serum leptin concentration (SMD = 0.53, P = .015).ConclusionThe present meta-analysis suggests that the serum leptin may profiles as a pivotal role in the pathogenesis and metastasis of BC. In addition, leptin will provide useful information for a therapeutic target to treat BC.

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