The Diagnostic Accuracy of Liquid Exosomal miRNAs for Cancer Detection: a Meta-Analysis

Early diagnosis of cancer is related to a good prognosis. Noninvasive methods of body fluid diagnosis are receiving more and more attention. Many studies have shown that exosomal miRNAs in body fluids may be potential biomarkers. Therefore, we conducted a meta-analysis to assess the overall diagnostic value of liquid exosomal miRNAs for cancer.

Relevant research was retrieved from multiple electronic databases. The research quality was evaluated based on the QUADAS-2 scale in Review Manager 5.3. Diagnostic value was evaluated by data analysis using Stata 16.0, and Meta-DiSc 1.4.

The meta-analysis included 23 articles and 79 research units. The pooled sensitivity was 0.74, specificity was 0.78, the diagnostic likelihood ratio positive was 3.55, the diagnostic likelihood ratio negative was 0.29, diagnostic OR was 14.26, and area under the curve was 0.8621. These results provide evidence for liquid exosomal miRNAs as potential biomarkers.

Liquid exosomal miRNAs are potential biomarkers for cancer diagnosis. In particular, diagnosis based on multiple miRNAs is more valuable than a single miRNA.