Association of DNA methylation of RASSF1A and SHOX2 with lung cancer risk: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

Background: This study estimates the research upon the potential worth of Ras association domain family member 1 A (RASSF1A) and short stature homeobox 2 (SHOX2) DNA methylation in lung cancer (LC) diagnosis.

Methods: Open-published research was searched through PubMed, EMBASE, the Cochrane Library, Web of Science, China National Knowledge Infrastructure, and Chinese Biology Medicine Literature Database. Data on true positives, false positives, false negatives, and true negatives were extracted.

Results: This meta-analysis included 22 studies encompassing 4109 subjects (2427 LC patients and 1682 controls). The combined sensitivity, specificity, and area under the curve for RASSF1A and SHOX2 DNA methylation were 0.77 (95% CI: 0.71-0.81), 0.90 (95% CI: 0.87-0.92), and 0.92 (95% CI: 0.87-0.92), respectively. The pooled positive likelihood ratio and negative likelihood ratio were 7.5 (5.9-9.7) and 0.26 (0.21-0.32). The combined diagnostic odds ratio was 29 (95% CI: 20-41).

Conclusion: RASSF1A and SHOX2 DNA methylation may emerge as potential diagnostic biomarkers for early-stage LC.