A pooled analysis of the prognostic value of PD-L1 in melanoma: evidence from 1062 patients

Background Programmed death-ligand 1 (PD-L1) was the first identified ligand of programmed death-1 (PD-1). PD-1/PD-L1 interactions inhibit T cell-mediated immune responses, limit cytokine production, and promote tumor immune escape. Recently, many studies have investigated the prognostic value of PD-L1 expression in patients with melanoma. However, the results of these analyses remain a subject of debate. We have therefore carried out a meta-analysis to identify the prognostic role of PD-L1 in melanoma. Methods A thorough medical literature search was performed in the databases PubMed, Web of Science, and Embase until October 2019. The pooled hazard ratios (HRs) and 95% confidence intervals (95% CIs) were calculated to evaluate the correlation between PD-L1 overexpression and prognosis. Publication bias was evaluated using Begg's test and Egger's test. Results Thirteen articles with 1062 enrolled patients were included in this meta-analysis. High PD-L1 expression did not correlate with overall survival (OS) (HR = 0.93, 95% CI 0.57-1.52, P = 0.781) or progression-free survival (PFS) (HR = 0.82, 95% CI 0.43-1.54, P = 0.535). However, PD-L1 overexpression correlated with the absence of lymph node (LN) metastasis (OR = 0.46, 95% CI 0.22-0.95, P = 0.036). Further, there was no significant relationship between PD-L1 expression and sex (OR = 1.29, 95% CI 0.90-1.84, P = 0.159), age (OR = 0.90, 95% CI 0.51-1.57, P = 0.708), or Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group Performance Status (OR = 0.55, 95% CI 0.06-4.83, P = 0.592). Conclusions This meta-analysis suggested that PD-L1 expression did not predict an inferior prognosis in patients with melanoma. However, high PD-L1 expression was associated with absence of LN metastasis in such patients.