Postoperative Circulating Tumour DNA in Predicting Recurrence of Non-small Cell Lung Cancer: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis.

AimsCirculating tumour DNA (ctDNA) has become a noninvasive biomarker for dynamic monitoring of tumours. However, available evidence on postoperative ctDNA in patients with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) is limited. This systematic review and meta-analysis aims to appraise the prognostic value of postoperative ctDNA in NSCLC.Materials and methodsPubMed, Cochrane, Web of Science, and Embase were retrieved until May 20, 2024, to identify potentially eligible studies. The primary outcomes were relapse-free survival (RFS) and overall survival (OS) based on the status of postoperative ctDNA. Subgroup analyses were conducted according to baseline characteristics. Data quality were appraised using the Newcastle-Ottawa scale. The meta-analysis was performed using Stata18.ResultsTotal of 13 studies on predicting NSCLC recurrence based on postoperative ctDNA were included. According to the meta-analysis, postoperative ctDNA-positive patients had markedly shorter RFS (HR = 6.05, 95% CI: 4.48-8.18, P < 0.01) compared to ctDNA-negative patients. Furthermore, ctDNA-positive patients exhibited a shorter OS (HR = 4.53, 95% CI: 2.56-8.02, P < 0.01) than ctDNA-negative patients.ConclusionPostoperative ctDNA detection can predict tumour recurrence and overall survival in NSCLC patients.Prospero registration numberCRD42024577421.