The diagnostic performance of (18)F-DCFPyL PET in patients with suspected prostate cancer: A systemic review and meta-analysis

INTRODUCTION: Our meta-analysis aimed to evaluate the diagnostic value of (18)F-DCFPyL prostate-specific membrane antigen (PSMA) PET in patients with suspected prostate cancer. METHODS: We searched for articles that evaluate the diagnostic value of (18)F-DCFPyL PSMA PET in patients with suspected prostate cancer in PubMed, Embase, Cochrane Library, and Web of Science until 1 August 2022. Using the QUADAS-2 instrument, two researchers independently assessed the effectiveness of the studies that were included. The four-grid table data were analyzed by Meta-disc1.4 and Stata 16.0 software. The heterogeneity of each study was tested. RESULTS: A total of five studies with 258 patients were included, and the pooled sensitivity and specificity of (18)F-DCFPyL PSMA PET for primary prostate cancer were 0.92 (95% confidence interval (CI): 0.85–0.96) and 0.59 (95% CI: 0.08–0.96), respectively. (18)F-DCFPyL PSMA PET was successful in detecting primary prostate cancer, with an area under the curve (AUC) of 0.92 (95% CI: 0.89–0.94). CONCLUSIONS: (18)F-DCFPyL PSMA PET has a strong predictive value for primary prostate cancer and is an effective method for the non-invasive diagnosis of prostate cancer. More prospective articles were needed.