MicroRNAs as novel biomarkers for the differentiation of malignant versus benign thyroid lesions: a meta-analysis

Abstract

ABSTRACT. The aim of this meta-analysis was to systematically evaluate the diagnostic accuracy of microRNAs (miRNAs) in distinguishing malignant thyroid lesions from benign ones and to determine the potential of miRNAs as diagnostic biomarkers for thyroid cancer. The random-effect model was used to summarize the pooled estimates of diagnostic accuracy, including sensitivity, specificity, positive likelihood ratio (PLR), negative likelihood ratio (NLR), and diagnostic odds ratio (DOR). The summary receiver-operating characteristic curve (SROC) and area under the SROC curve (AUC) were used to further evaluate the overall diagnostic value. Overall, 20 studies from 7 articles, including 266 thyroid cancer patients and 277 controls with benign thyroid disease, were available for analysis. The pooled sensitivity, specificity, PLR, NLR, and DOR were: 0. 7279-7289 (2015) 0.95 versus 0.82, suggesting that the multiple miRNA assay is a more credible method for thyroid cancer detection. In summary, miRNA assays, especially multiple miRNA assays, may play an important role as a second-line diagnostic tool to improve the diagnostic accuracy of fine needle aspiration biopsy in indeterminate lesions. However, further studies are warranted to confirm our findings.

Diagnostic value of circulating microRNAs in thyroid carcinoma: A systematic review and meta‐analysis

“…The results showed that the binding of several circulating miRNAs may be more accurate in identifying TC and BTN than single miRNAs. In addition, other meta‐analyses of other cancers have also demonstrated that multiple miRNA assays have higher diagnostic accuracy than single miRNA assays 10,23 . The reason may be that several gene mutations and epigenetic abnormalities involved in the cancer occurrence.…”

“…Recent studies have found that the expression of miRNA is closely related to the occurrence and development of thyroid cancer and can be used as a molecular marker for its diagnosis, treatment and prognosis 9 . A previous meta‐analysis has proved microRNAs as novel biomarkers for the differentiation of malignant versus benign thyroid lesions in FNAB samples with sensitivity of 0.78 and specificity of 0.73 10 . MicroRNAs can present extensively in plasma and serum, because they are protected by some membrane‐secreted vesicles and/or together with RNA‐binding proteins, which prevent RNase degradation 11 .…”

miR‐98‐5p promotes apoptosis and inhibits migration and cell growth in papillary thyroid carcinoma through Bax/Caspase‐3 by HMGA2

“…They can extensively regulate important biological processes, such as cell growth, proliferation, invasion, differentiation, and apoptosis . An increasing number of studies have indicated that miRNA is aberrantly expressed in multiple malignancies, including PTC . Moreover, miRNA displays superb stability in formalin‐fixed tissue samples .…”

“…9 An increasing number of studies have indicated that miRNA is aberrantly expressed in multiple malignancies, including PTC. 9 Moreover, miRNA displays superb stability in formalin-fixed tissue samples. 8 Therefore, the related expression profiles in tissue samples can be stably obtained.…”

Association between neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio and differentiated thyroid cancer: a meta-analysis

“…While the prevalence of thyroid nodules in the population is increasing, only 5% to 10% harbor malignant disease2. Still, there is a pressing need to correctly identify the nature of thyroid nodules3, because thyroid cancer is the most common endocrine malignancy4 and often presents in thyroid nodules. Differentiated thyroid cancers (DTCs) account for approximately 95% of all thyroid cancer and generally have a favorable prognosis5.…”