Diagnostic value of contrast-enhanced CT in clear cell renal cell carcinoma: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Contrast-enhanced computed tomography (CECT) improves lesion contrast with surrounding tissues through the injection of contrast agents. This enhancement allows for more precise lesion characterization, aiding in the early diagnosis of clear cell renal cell carcinoma (ccRCC). This meta-analysis aims to assess the diagnostic efficacy of CECT in ccRCC and to provide an ideal imaging examination method for the preoperative diagnosis of ccRCC.

We conducted a comprehensive search across six major online databases: PubMed, Web of Science, Cochrane Library, WANFANG DATA, China National Knowledge Infrastructure, and Chinese BioMedical Literature Database (CBM). The objective was to collate and analyze studies that evaluate the diagnostic utility of CECT in the identification of ccRCC. Meta-disc 1.4 and Stata 16.0 were used to conduct a meta-analysis and evaluate the diagnostic accuracy of CECT for ccRCC.

The meta-analysis included 17 relevant studies investigating the diagnostic value of CECT for ccRCC. The combined sensitivity and specificity of CECT were 0.88 (95% confidence interval: 0.83–0.91) and 0.82 (95%CI: 0.75–0.87), respectively. Positive diagnostic likelihood ratio = 4.87 (95%CI: 3.47–6.84), negative diagnostic likelihood ratio = 0.15 (95%CI: 0.11–0.21), and diagnostic odds ratio = 32.67 (95%CI: 18.21–58.61). In addition, the area under the ROC curve was 0.92 (95%CI: 0.89–0.94), indicating that CECT has a decent discriminative ability in diagnosing ccRCC.

CECT is recognized as a highly effective imaging tool for diagnosing ccRCC. It provides valuable guidance in the preoperative assessment and planning of surgical strategies for patients with ccRCC.