Which type of cancer patients are more susceptible to the SARS-COX-2: evidence from a meta-analysis and bioinformatics analysis

Wang, Bolin; Huang, Yan

OBJECTIVE: Numerous studies have reported that patients with cancer seem to be more likely to be diagnosed with COVID-19. However, it is still unknown the prevalence of different types of cancer in patients with COVID-19. Therefore, this study will explore which type of cancer patients are more susceptible to the SARS-COX-2. METHODS: Eligible studies were identified by searching several electronic databases for relevant studies published before April 28, 2020. The language was restricted to English or Chinese. The meta-analysis was performed using Stata 12.0. The GEPIA database evaluated the expression of SARS-COX-2 infection key genes in different types of normal and tumor samples. RESULTS: A total of 6 studies, including 205 patients, were identified to be eligible for this meta-analysis. Among the cancer patients infected by SARS-COX-2, the proportion of patients with the lung, colorectal,breast,esophagus,bladder,pancreatic and cervical cancer were 24.7%, 20.5%, 13.0%, 7.6%,7.3%,6.1%,and 6.0%, respectively. These findings were also corroborated by the results of the GEPIA database. CONCLUSION: Compared with other types of cancer, lung cancer and colorectal cancer are more susceptible to SARS-COX-2 infection.