PRISMA flowchart.

Flowchart showing the number of records identified, screened, and deemed eligible for pooled meta-analysis.

Sub-group meta-analysis for 5-year breast cancer survival rates across Africa.

The blue box represents the overall survival rate of the respective sub-groups, while the red box indicates the pooled overall survival rate. The horizontal lines traversing each box depict the corresponding confidence intervals. Phetero represents the P value for heterogeneity test while Psubgroup indicates the P value for the test for subgroup analysis. I2 represents the statistical heterogeneity (%) in the analysis. N/A – not applicable due to single study meta-analysis.

Cumulative meta-analysis for 5-year survival rates in Africa, adding studies in chronological order.

The blue box represents the overall survival rate of the respective study, while the horizontal lines traversing each box depict the corresponding confidence intervals. Tau, Tau2, and I2 represent the different measures of statistical heterogeneity in the pooled estimate.

Bubble plots for the relationship between mean years of schooling (MYS) and quality score (QS) of the included studies with the 5-year survival rate of breast cancer patients.

Each point represents a study, with the size of the points indicating the precision (1/standard error) of the data. The solid black line represents the regression line, the dashed lines indicate the 95% confidence intervals, and the dotted lines show the prediction intervals.

Orchard plots for the meta-regression analyses of the 5-year survival rate and categorical predictors.

The plots show the pooled survival rate (trunk), 95% confidence intervals (branches), and prediction intervals (twigs). Bubble sizes indicate precision (1/standard error) of each study, with larger points representing higher precision.

Funnel plots for assessing publication bias in studies reporting breast cancer survival rates.

Standard funnel plot for 88 studies (panel A); contour-enhanced funnel plot for 88 studies (panel B); Trim-and-fill funnel plot with 26 hypothetical studies (white dots) added to 88 studies (gray dots; panel C); and Limit meta-analysis funnel plot showing increasing bias with standard error. Gray diamond shows the adjusted average effect when standard error is zero.

Comparison of our current 5-year survival estimates with the previous 2018 estimates.

A territorial map of continental Africa is shown (on the left) with 5-year survival estimates and 95% confidence interval from 2018 and 2024. The survival estimates have been rounded off to the nearest whole number. Two forest plots are shown (on the right) that were used to estimate the effect of addition of eight new countries in our 2024 estimates and the effect of missed/excluded references in the 2018 estimates.

Comparison of our current 5-year survival estimates with the previously reported global estimates.

Forest plot showing the pooled meta-analyzed overall 5-year survival rate with 95% confidence interval for female patients with breast cancer across different regions. WHO – World Health Organization; PAHO – Pan American Health Organization; WPRO – Western Pacific Region; SEARO – South-East Asia Region; EURO – European Region; EMRO – Eastern Mediterranean Region; AFRO – African Region; ASEAN – Association of Southeast Asian Nations.