Accuracy of Raman spectroscopy in laryngeal carcinoma diagnosis: a meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: This study explores the accuracy of Raman spectroscopy in diagnosing laryngeal carcinoma. METHODS: A comprehensive search was performed in PubMed, Web of Science, and Embase (retrieval deadline: March 2025) to locate studies that presented data on true positives (TP), false positives (FP), true negatives (TN), and false negatives (FN) regarding the use of Raman spectroscopy for diagnosing laryngeal carcinoma. Using either random or fixed-effects models, we computed pooled sensitivity, specificity, diagnostic odds ratio (DOR), and the area under the summary receiver operating characteristic (SROC) curve. The methodological quality was evaluated with QUADAS-2, and Deek's test was employed to assess publication bias. RESULTS: Seven studies involving 1076 samples in total were analyzed. The overall sensitivity and specificity were determined to be 0.88 (95% confidence interval [CI] 0.86-0.90) and 0.91 (95% CI 0.88-0.93), respectively. Positive likelihood ratios (PLR) and negative likelihood ratios (NLR) were calculated at 9.70 (95% CI 7.13-13.21) and 0.13 (95% CI 0.11-0.16), respectively, resulting in a diagnostic odds ratio (DOR) of 74.07 (95% CI 39.0-140.9). The summary receiver operating characteristic (SROC) curve demonstrated an area under the curve (AUC) of 0.95 (95% CI 0.94-0.98). Furthermore, subgroup analysis revealed significant improvements in specificity over time (p = 0.02), and no significant regional or algorithmic heterogeneity was found. CONCLUSION: Raman spectroscopy exhibits remarkable diagnostic accuracy in detecting laryngeal carcinoma, with a pooled sensitivity of 88% and a specificity of 91%. This highlights its promise as a non-invasive supplement for diagnosis.