SYSTEMATIC REVIEW article
Front. Endocrinol.
Sec. Cancer Endocrinology
177Lu-labelled peptide receptor radionuclide therapy in patients with neuroendocrine tumors: A systematic review and meta-analysis
Provisionally accepted
- Harbin Medical University Cancer Hospital, Harbin, China
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Objective: This systematic review and meta-analysis evaluated the efficacy and safety of 177Lu-labelled peptide receptor radionuclide therapy (PRRT) in neuroendocrine tumors (NETs). Methods: This systematic review and meta-analysis conducted a search of the PubMed/MEDLINE, Embase, and Web of Science databases. Included studies assessed treatment outcomes using Response Evaluation Criteria in Solid Tumors (RECIST) or World Health Organization (WHO) criteria. A random-effects model was used to calculate pooled proportions. Results: A total of 14 studies with 1844 patients were included. The pooled disease control rate (DCR) was 87.6% (95% Confidence Interval (CI), 82.5%-92%), and the objective response rate (ORR) was 32.2% (95% CI, 25.4%-39.3%). Median progression-free survival (PFS) was 30.87 months (95% CI, 22.71–39.04), and median overall survival (OS) was 51.85 months (95% CI, 39.99–63.71). Subgroup analysis revealed a significantly higher DCR in grade 1–2 NETs 97.7% (95% CI, 91.4%-100%) compared to grade 3 NETs 90.8% (95% CI, 85.1%-94.4%), and a higher ORR in grade 1–2 tumors 45.4% (95% CI, 35.3%-55.6%) compared to grade 3 tumors 27.1% (95% CI, 21.2%-33.4%). PFS was longer in pancreatic NETs 93.9 months (95% CI, 39.45–148.35) than in gastrointestinal NETs 66.32 months (95% CI, 41.78–90.87). The overall incidence of adverse events was 4.1%, with grade ≥3 toxicities in 4.3%. 177Lu-PRRT demonstrates high efficacy and a favorable safety profile in treating NETs. Conclusion: 177Lu-DOTA-Tyr3-octreotate (177Lu-DOTATATE) demonstrates high efficacy and a favorable safety profile in treating NETs.
Keywords: 177Lu-DOTATATE, Gastroenteropancreatic NETs, Meta-analysis, neuroendocrine tumor, peptide receptor radionuclide therapy
Received: 02 Dec 2025; Accepted: 03 Feb 2026.
Copyright: © 2026 Wang, Pang, Lian and Lu. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence:
Jie Lian
HaiBo Lu
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