Accuracy of early detection of colorectal tumours using stool methylation markers: A meta-analysis

Figure 1 Flowchart of the study selection.

Figure 2 Forest plot of SFRP2 methylation in the diagnosis of colorectal cancer. A: The sensitivity of SFRP2 methylation in stool samples used for colorectal carcinoma diagnosis. The point estimates of specificity from each study are shown as red squares; B: The specificity of SFRP2 methylation in stool samples used for colorectal cancer diagnosis. The point estimates of specificity from each study are shown as blue squares; C: The summary receiver operating characteristic curves of SFRP2 methylation assays used for diagnosis of colorectal carcinoma. Red circles represent each study that was included in the meta-analysis. The size of each study is indicated by the size of the red circle. Summary receiver operating characteristic curves summarize the overall diagnostic accuracy. Error bars indicate the 95%CI, and df indicates the degrees of freedom.

Figure 3 Forest plot of SFRP2 methylation in the diagnosis of colorectal adenomas. A: Plot and table of the sensitivity of SFRP2 for diagnosis of colorectal adenomas; B: Plot and table of the specificity of SFRP2 for diagnosis of colorectal adenomas; C: The symmetric summary receiver-operating characteristic of SFRP2 for diagnosis of colorectal adenomas.

Figure 4 Assessment of the publication bias in the faecal SFPR2 methylation for the diagnosis of colorectal cancer (A) and adenomas (B). No significant publication biases were found in any of these studies (all P > 0.05).