Frontiers in surgery
Salivary microRNAs for oral cancer and oral potentially malignant disorder triage: a scoping review and evidence map
By Ding J, Jiang H, Lin S and 2 others.
Abstract
Background
Salivary microRNAs (miRNAs) have been investigated for oral cancer detection, but comparison with healthy volunteers does not establish performance among patients with oral mucosal lesions. This review maps evidence relevant to discrimination between oral squamous cell carcinoma or oral cancer (OSCC/OC) and oral potentially malignant disorders (OPMDs).
Methods
The evidence was organized as a scoping review with study-specific diagnostic descriptions. Clinical comparators, assay methods, thresholds, participant overlap and data provenance were charted. No estimates were pooled. Searches were executed on 8 September 2026 in PubMed (n = 487), Web of Science Core Collection (n = 362), Scopus (n = 318) and the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (n = 34), with 28 additional records identified through citation chasing and reference-list checking, for a total of 1,229 records. After removal of 412 duplicates and 15 records before screening, 802 titles and abstracts were screened; 54 full-text reports were sought, of which 3 could not be retrieved and 51 were assessed. Sixteen sources were included in the evidence map, comprising 13 primary studies and 3 contextual systematic reviews.