Associations between BRAF(V600E) and prognostic factors and poor outcomes in papillary thyroid carcinoma: a meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: The objective of this study is to perform a meta-analysis to evaluate the associations between the BRAF(V600E) mutation status and aggressive clinicopathological features and poor prognostic factors in papillary thyroid cancer.

METHODS: A literature search was performed within the PubMed, MEDLINE, Web of Science databases, and EMBASE databases using the Medical Subject Headings and keywords from January 2003 to July 2015. Individual study-specific odds ratios and confidence intervals were calculated, as were the Mantel-Haenszel pooled odds ratios for the combined studies.

RESULTS: Sixty-three studies of 20,764 patients were included in the final analysis. Compared with wild-type BRAF, the BRAF(V600E) mutation was associated with aggressive clinicopathological factors, including extrathyroidal extension, higher TNM stage, lymph node metastasis, and recurrence, and was associated with reduced overall survival; however, there was no significant association between the presence of BRAF mutation and distant metastasis.

CONCLUSIONS: BRAF mutations are closely associated with aggressive clinicopathological characteristics and poorer prognosis in papillary thyroid cancer. Accordingly, aggressive treatment should be considered for papillary thyroid cancer patients with BRAF mutation.