Application of fluorescent tracers in ovarian cancer surgical navigation: a systematic review and meta-analysis
Ovarian cancer is a lethal gynecological health issue, that poses a serious threat to women's health worldwide. The objective of this study was to provide a literature overview of the application of fluorescent tracers during surgical ovarian cancer treatment. We systematically searched 7 electronic databases from inception to September 2024. Studies were included if they investigated the application of fluorescence-guided surgery in patients with a diagnosis of ovarian cancer. Statistical analysis was performed with Stata 14.0 software, and the pooled detection rate and measures of diagnostic accuracy were evaluated. Subgroup analyses were carried out to evaluate the types of tracers, doses, injection sites, etc. Complications and adverse events were also reported. The Quality Assessment of Diagnostic Accuracy Studies 2 tool was used for quality assessment. A total of 21 studies with 681 participants were included. The overall sentinel lymph node (SLN) detection rate was 86.2% (95% CI: 69.6-97.5%; p = 0.000; I Fluorescence-guided surgery is a potentially safe and applicable technique in ovarian cancer surgery. However, considering the small number of participants and the heterogeneity, further studies are needed to better evaluate the accuracy outcomes regarding the type of tracer, dose, injection site, etc.