Prognostic biomarkers for malignant transformation of oral potentially malignant disorders: a scoping review protocol.

OBJECTIVE: This scoping review aims to identify and systematically map the available evidence concerning the prognostic biomarkers for malignant transformation of oral potentially malignant disorders (OPMD), and to identify and analyze possible knowledge gaps in this field of literature.

INTRODUCTION: It is hypothesized that diagnosis and treatment of oral cancer in its early stages may be the key to improving the prognosis and reducing treatment-related consequences. OPMD represent tissue alterations with a higher risk of malignant transformation compared to the normal mucosa. Therefore, the study of prognostic biomarkers for OPMD could potentially represent new diagnosis and therapeutic targets and, consequently, contribute to the reduction of oral cancer burden worldwide.

INCLUSION CRITERIA: Longitudinal studies investigating prognostic biomarkers regarding the malignant transformation of OPMD will be included. The initial OPMD diagnosis and the malignant transformation must have been confirmed by histopathological analysis. Studies that aim to achieve minimal homogeneity, or that assess biomarkers in other locations (blood, plasma or others) will be excluded.

METHODS: Five electronic databases and three grey literature databases will be consulted. No restrictions regarding publication date will be applied. Only studies published in the Latin (Roman) alphabet, which comprises most of the European languages, will be included. Study selection will be performed by two authors in a two-phase process; if any disagreement arises, a third author will be consulted to make a final decision. Data extraction will be performed by two authors using a standardized extraction tool. The results will be described in details accordantly with the aims of this scoping review.