title: Prognostic value of long noncoding RNA MALAT1 in digestive system malignancies.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  MALAT1, a newly discovered long noncoding RNA (lncRNA), has been reported to be highly expressed in many types of cancers. This meta-analysis summarizes its potential prognostic value in digestive system malignancies.
  
  
  METHODS
  A quantitative meta-analysis was performed through a systematic search in PubMed, Cochrane Library, Web of Science and Chinese National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI) for eligible papers on the prognostic impact of MALAT1 in digestive system malignancies from inception to Apr. 25, 2015. Pooled hazard ratios (HRs) with 95% confidence interval (95% CI) were calculated to summarize the effect.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Five studies were included in the study, with a total of 527 patients. A significant association was observed between MALAT1 abundance and poor overall survival (OS) of patients with digestive system malignancies, with pooled hazard ratio (HR) of 7.68 (95% confidence interval [CI]: 4.32-13.66, P<0.001). Meta sensitivity analysis suggested the reliability of our findings. No publication bias was observed.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  MALAT1 abundance may serve as a novel predictive factor for poor prognosis in patients with digestive system malignancies.
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiology, First Affiliated Hospital, Xinjiang Medical UniversityUrumqi, China; Xinjiang Key Laboratory of Cardiovascular Disease ResearchUrumqi, China.
authors.forename: Hui
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Zhai
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiology, First Affiliated Hospital, Xinjiang Medical UniversityUrumqi, China; Xinjiang Key Laboratory of Cardiovascular Disease ResearchUrumqi, China.
authors.forename: Xiao-Mei
authors.initials: XM
authors.lastname: Li
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiology, First Affiliated Hospital, Xinjiang Medical UniversityUrumqi, China; Xinjiang Key Laboratory of Cardiovascular Disease ResearchUrumqi, China.
authors.forename: Ailifeire
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Maimaiti
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiology, First Affiliated Hospital, Xinjiang Medical UniversityUrumqi, China; Xinjiang Key Laboratory of Cardiovascular Disease ResearchUrumqi, China.
authors.forename: Qing-Jie
authors.initials: QJ
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiology, First Affiliated Hospital, Xinjiang Medical UniversityUrumqi, China; Xinjiang Key Laboratory of Cardiovascular Disease ResearchUrumqi, China.
authors.forename: Wu
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Liao
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiology, First Affiliated Hospital, Xinjiang Medical UniversityUrumqi, China; Xinjiang Key Laboratory of Cardiovascular Disease ResearchUrumqi, China.
authors.forename: Hong-Mei
authors.initials: HM
authors.lastname: Lai
authors.affiliation: Xinjiang Key Laboratory of Cardiovascular Disease Research Urumqi, China.
authors.forename: Fen
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiology, First Affiliated Hospital, Xinjiang Medical UniversityUrumqi, China; Xinjiang Key Laboratory of Cardiovascular Disease ResearchUrumqi, China.
authors.forename: Yi-Ning
authors.initials: YN
authors.lastname: Yang
keywords: LncRNA; MALAT1; digestive system malignancies; meta-analysis; prognosis