[Gatsky]

Yeah, well in my field, oncology, meta-analyses are somewhat irrelevant. As you can imagine, the bar for completing a phase 3 randomised trial in oncology is pretty high. Meta-analyses are mostly there for trainees to notch up a paper.

Another fine example of the author's point is the ivermectin in covid meta-analytic nonsense (which I cannot even bring myself to link), where a bunch of small rubbish trials are meta-analysed into a 'flawless' body of evidence while double blind randomised trials are impugned.

[haldujai]

I don't know what part of oncology you're in but meta-analyses are still very much important.

[Gatsky]

Disagree. I change practice on Monday after a single quality trial. Pick up any society guideline, only a small amount of the recommendations rely on meta-analyses. Look at immunotherapy or antibody drug conjugates, revolutionary therapies that arrived one trial at a time.