Evidence map›Paper›PMID 39408131›Full record

ReviewHealthcare (Basel, Switzerland)2024

Diagnostic Performance of Host and Viral DNA Methylation Analysis in the Identification of Anal Intraepithelial Neoplasia and Cancer: Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.

Narcisa Muresu, Mariangela Valentina Puci, Giovanni Sotgiu, Illari Sechi, Andrea Cossu, Manuela Usai, Andrea Fausto Piana

Abstract readReview
In one paragraph

Review in Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland), 2024. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 2 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
2citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

2 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. International journal of molecular sciences · 2025
    Article
  2. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

7 authors.

Narcisa MuresuMedical Management, Hygiene, Epidemiology and Hospital Infection, University Hospital of Sassari, 07100 Sassari, Italy.ORCID 0000-0002-3847-870X
Mariangela Valentina PuciClinical Epidemiology and Medical Statistics Unit, Department of Medicine, Surgery and Pharmacy, University of Sassari, 07100 Sassari, Italy.ORCID 0000-0001-5656-6845
Giovanni SotgiuClinical Epidemiology and Medical Statistics Unit, Department of Medicine, Surgery and Pharmacy, University of Sassari, 07100 Sassari, Italy.ORCID 0000-0002-1600-4474
Illari SechiDepartment of Medicine, Surgery and Pharmacy, University of Sassari, 07100 Sassari, Italy.ORCID 0000-0002-7477-8320
Andrea CossuDepartment of Medicine, Surgery and Pharmacy, University of Sassari, 07100 Sassari, Italy.
Manuela UsaiDepartment of Humanities and Social Science, University of Sassari, 07100 Sassari, Italy.
Andrea Fausto PianaDepartment of Medicine, Surgery and Pharmacy, University of Sassari, 07100 Sassari, Italy.ORCID 0000-0002-6609-8886

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

introductionDNA methylation-based biomarkers have been investigated as useful tools in the carcinogenesis process, including the triage of HPV-associated cancers. In this context, we conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis focused on evaluating the changes in the level of DNA methylation in cases of pre-cancerous (i.e., anal intraepithelial neoplasia, AIN-1, -2., -3) and cancerous (i.e., squamous cell carcinoma, SCC) anal lesions.

methodsA research in the PubMed, Scopus, and Web of Science databases was carried out, following the PRISMA 2020 protocol, using the following keywords: "anal cancer", "anal intraepithelial neoplasia", "methylation", and "epigenetic". All observational studies that reported the level of DNA methylation by grade of anal lesions and for different target genes were included. The QUADAS-2 tool was used to assess the studies' quality, whereas pooled prevalence, sensitivity, specificity, and diagnostic odds ratio (DOR) were employed to verify the accuracy of the test in the detection of high-grade lesions.

resultsEight studies met the inclusion criteria, involving a total of 1555 clinical samples. The prevalence of methylation-positive samples by histological grading was 27%, 45%, 54%, and 98% for AIN1, AIN2, AIN3, and SCC, respectively. Similar results were observed for the DOR, with higher ORs in more severe lesions. The pooled AUC (95%CI) for the diagnosis of ≥AIN2 was 0.68 (0.63-0.73).

conclusionsThe present review and meta-analysis support the introduction of DNA methylation-based biomarkers in the triage of subjects with low-grade anal lesions and in the monitoring of treatment outcomes. Standardized protocols and a prospective study design are needed to implement methylation tests in clinical practice.

Indexed as

anal cancerbiomarkersDNA methylation testepigeneticHPV

Identifiers

PMID39408131
PMCPMC11475795

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.