Individual patient data were obtained from five trials (650 patients) out of 10 (953 patients) that were potentially eligible. Baseline characteristics were balanced except for hepatic metastasis, which was more prevalent in the standard care comparator group.
The overall survival hazard ratio was 0.8 (95% CI 0.68 to 0.95). There was no significant heterogeneity between trials. Adjustment for baseline characteristics marginally increased the potential benefit of chemotherapy and lentinan (HR 0.76, 95% CI 0.64 to 0.90). Subgroups did not explain any heterogeneity in the results.