The Diagnostic Power of Circulating miR-1246 in Screening Cancer: An Updated Meta-analysis
Huynh Quang Khanh, Anh‐Tuan Le, Thang Thanh Phan, Toan Trong Ho, Suong Phuoc Pho, Hang Thuy Nguyen, Lê Tuấn Anh, Thuc Tri Nguyen, Son Truong Nguyen
Abstract
Background. MicroRNA-1246 (miR-1246), an oncomiR that regulates the expression of multiple cancer-related genes, has been attracted and studied as a promising indicator of various tumors. However, diverse conclusions on diagnostic accuracy have been shown due to the small sample size and limited studies included. This meta-analysis is aimed at systematically assessing the performance of extracellular circulating miR-1246 in screening common cancers. Methods. We searched the PubMed/MEDLINE, Web of Science, Cochrane Library, and Google Scholar databases for relevant studies until November 28, 2022. Then, the summary receiver operating characteristic (SROC) curves were drawn and calculated area under the curve (AUC), diagnostic odds ratio (DOR), sensitivity, and specificity values of circulating miR-1246 in the cancer surveillance. Results. After selection and quality assessment, 29 eligible studies with 5914 samples (3232 cases and 2682 controls) enrolled in the final analysis. The pooled AUC, DOR, sensitivity, and specificity of circulating miR-1246 in screening cancers were 0.885 (95% confidence interval (CI): 0.827-0.892), 27.7 (95% CI: 17.1-45.0), 84.2% (95% CI: 79.4-88.1), and 85.3% (95% CI: 80.5-89.2), respectively. Among cancer types, superior performance was noted for breast cancer ( <a:math xmlns:a="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" id="M1"> <a:mtext>AUC</a:mtext> <a:mo>=</a:mo> <a:mn>0.950</a:mn> <a:mo>,</a:mo> <a:mtext>DOR</a:mtext> <a:mo>=</a:mo> <a:mn>98.5</a:mn> </a:math> ) compared to colorectal cancer ( <c:math xmlns:c="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" id="M2"> <c:mtext>AUC</c:mtext> <c:mo>=</c:mo> <c:mn>0.905</c:mn> <c:mo>,</c:mo> <c:mtext>DOR</c:mtext> <c:mo>=</c:mo> <c:mn>47.6</c:mn> </c:math> ), esophageal squamous cell carcinoma ( <e:math xmlns:e="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" id="M3"> <e:mtext>AUC</e:mtext> <e:mo>=</e:mo> <e:mn>0.757</e:mn> <e:mo>,</e:mo> <e:mtext>DOR</e:mtext> <e:mo>=</e:mo> <e:mn>8.0</e:mn> </e:math> ), hepatocellular carcinoma ( <g:math xmlns:g="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" id="M4"> <g:mtext>AUC</g:mtext> <g:mo>=</g:mo> <g:mn>0.872</g:mn> <g:mo>,</g:mo> <g:mtext>DOR</g:mtext> <g:mo>=</g:mo> <g:mn>18.6</g:mn> </g:math> ), pancreatic cancer ( <i:math xmlns:i="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" id="M5"> <i:mtext>AUC</i:mtext> <i:mo>=</i:mo> <i:mn>0.767</i:mn> <i:mo>,</i:mo> <i:mtext>DOR</i:mtext> <i:mo>=</i:mo> <i:mn>12.3</i:mn> </i:math> ), and others ( <k:math xmlns:k="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" id="M6"> <k:mtext>AUC</k:mtext> <k:mo>=</k:mo> <k:mn>0.887</k:mn> <k:mo>,</k:mo> <k:mtext>DOR</k:mtext> <k:mo>=</k:mo> <k:mn>27.5</k:mn> <k:mo>,</k:mo> <k:mi>P</k:mi> <k:mo>=</k:mo> <k:mn>0.007</k:mn> </k:math> ). No significant publication bias in DOR was observed in the meta-analysis (funnel plot asymmetry test with <m:math xmlns:m="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" id="M7"> <m:mi>P</m:mi> <m:mo>=</m:mo> <m:mn>0.652</m:mn> </m:math> ; <o:math xmlns:o="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" id="M8"> <o:mtext>skewness</o:mtext> <o:mtext> </o:mtext> <o:mtext>value</o:mtext> <o:mo>=</o:mo> <o:mn>0.672</o:mn> </o:math> , <q:math xmlns:q="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" id="M9"> <q:mi>P</q:mi> <q:mo>=</q:mo> <q:mn>0.071</q:mn> </q:math> ). Conclusion. Extracellular circulating miR-1246 may serve as a reliable biomarker with good sensitivity and specificity in screening cancers, especially breast cancer.