The biological perturbation associated with psychological and surgical stress is implicated in cancer recurrence.

Preclinical evidence suggests that beta-blockers can be protective against cancer progression.

We undertook a meta-analysis of epidemiological and perioperative clinical studies to investigate the association between beta-blocker use and cancer recurrence (CR), disease-free survival (DFS), and overall survival (OS).

Databases were searched until September 2017, reported hazard ratios (HRs) pooled, and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) calculated.

Comparative studies examining the effect of beta-blockers (selective and non-selective) on cancer outcomes were included.

The Newcastle Ottawa Scale was used to assess methodological quality and bias.