Prognostic and predictive values of CXCL10 in colorectal cancer

Background The role of CXCL10 in progression and prognosis of colorectal cancer (CRC) has been studied for years, yet results remain controversial. Aim This study aims to explore the relationship between CXCL10 and CRC progression and prognosis. Methods We evaluated plasma CXCL10 in CRC patients using ELISA. We also performed a meta-analysis of the associations between CXCL10 and overall survival (OS), disease-free survival (DFS), disease-specific survival (DSS), relapse-free survival (RFS), and clinicopathological features. Finally, correlations between CXCL10 and methylation or immune infiltration were performed using TCGA data. Results ELISA analysis showed that CXCL10 was associated with age, red blood cells, blood platelets, and blood urea nitrogen. A separate analysis of 3,763 patients from 24 studies revealed that there were significant associations between low CXCL10 expression and OS (HR 1.25, 95% CI 1.01–1.53), DFS (HR 1.65, 95% CI 1.17–2.34), and RFS (HR 1.43, 95% CI 1.20–1.71) in CRC. Additionally, downregulated CXCL10 expression was significantly correlated with age [odds ratio (OR) 1.31, 95% CI 1.13–1.52], metastasis (OR 1.34, 95% CI 1.11–1.63), recurrence (OR 1.46, 95% CI 1.16–1.83), tumor location (OR 1.88, 95% CI 1.58–2.24), differentiation (OR 0.57, 95% CI 0.35–0.93), microsatellite instability (OR 0.23, 95% CI 0.15–0.35), BRAF mutation (OR 1.62, 95% CI 1.25–2.08), p53 mutation (OR 0.28, 95% CI 0.16–0.47), and CIMP (OR 0.27, 95% CI 0.17–0.43). Furthermore, significant associations were observed between CXCL10 and methylation and immune infiltration. Conclusions The study suggests that CXCL10 might be a potential target for the treatment of CRC. Trial registration NCT03189992. Registered 4 June 2017, https://www.clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/study/NCT03189992?term=NCT03189992&rank=1 .