Combining of chemotherapy with targeted therapy for advanced biliary tract cancer: A systematic review and meta-analysis

Figure 1 Flowchart of the study selection process. RCT: Randomized clinical trials.

Figure 2 Forest plots on the assessment of objective response rate in biliary tract cancer patients treated with chemotherapy + targeted therapy or chemotherapy alone. A: Overall population; B: Subgroup analysis according to agent targets; C: Subgroup analysis according to chemotherapy regimens. CT: Chemotherapy; TT: Targeted therapy; EGFR: Epidermal growth factor receptor; VEGFR: Vascular endothelial growth factor receptor; MET: Mesenchymal-epithelial transition factor.

Figure 3 Forest plots on the assessment of progression-free survival in biliary tract cancer patients treated with chemotherapy + targeted therapy or chemotherapy alone. A: Overall population; B: Subgroup analysis according to agent targets; C: Subgroup analysis according to chemotherapy regimens. EGFR: Epidermal growth factor receptor; VEGFR: Vascular endothelial growth factor receptor; MET: Mesenchymal-epithelial transition factor.

Figure 4 Forest plots on the assessment of overall survival in biliary tract cancer patients treated with chemotherapy + targeted therapy or chemotherapy alone. A: Overall population; B: Subgroup analysis according to agent targets; C: Subgroup analysis according to chemotherapy regimens. EGFR: Epidermal growth factor receptor; VEGFR: Vascular endothelial growth factor receptor; MET: Mesenchymal-epithelial transition factor.

Figure 5 Forest plot comparing the efficacy of chemotherapy + targeted therapy and chemotherapy in different types of tumors. A: Objective response rate; B: progression-free survival; C: Overall survival. CT: Chemotherapy; TT: Targeted therapy; iCCA: Intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma; eCCA: Extrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma; GBC: Gallbladder cancer.

Figure 6 Funnel plot for the assessment of publication bias. A: Publication bias for objective response rate; B: Publication bias for progression-free survival; C: Publication bias for overall survival. HR: Hazard ratio.