Korean J Fam Med.  2013 Nov;34(6):413-419. 10.4082/kjfm.2013.34.6.413.

Factors Associated with Serum Levels of Carcinoembryonic Antigen in Healthy Non-smokers

• No JI
• Yang JY
• Hyun HJ
• Yeon CS
• Choi HJ

• KMID: 2304167
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.4082/kjfm.2013.34.6.413

Abstract

BACKGROUND
Carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA), a serological marker of malignant tumors, demonstrates a modest increase under nonmalignant conditions such as aging and smoking. Also, recent study results suggested that serum CEA levels may be related to insulin resistance or low-grade inflammation. The aim of this study was to investigate the factors associated with serum CEA levels in healthy non-smokers.
METHODS
Data was gathered from 21,501 adults aged 20 and over. We excluded 19,081 subjects who had omissions in anthropometric measurements or laboratory tests, or who had previous or current smoking history.
RESULTS
The mean CEA level was 1.18 +/- 0.85 ng/dL in males and 0.93 +/- 0.73 ng/dL in females. After adjustment for age, CEA level was positively correlated with fasting glucose, glycosylated hemoglobin (HbA1C), high density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol, estimated glomerular filtration rate in males. In females, CEA level was positively correlated with fasting glucose, HbA1C, HDL cholesterol, aspartate aminotransferase, and high-sensitivity C-reactive protein. In both gender groups, HbA1C had a strong influence on CEA levels when all other variables were included in the regression model (P < 0.05).
CONCLUSION
Within normal range, serum CEA levels were significantly associated with HbA1C levels but not with homeostasis model assessment of insulin resistance in the non-smoking population. These findings suggest that serum CEA levels are influenced by the glucose level itself instead of insulin resistance.

Keyword

Carcinoembryonic Antigen; Tumor Marker; Insulin Resistance; Cardiovascular Diseases

MeSH Terms

Adult
Aging
Aspartate Aminotransferases
C-Reactive Protein
Carcinoembryonic Antigen*
Cardiovascular Diseases
Cholesterol
Cholesterol, HDL
Fasting
Female
Glomerular Filtration Rate
Glucose
Hemoglobin A, Glycosylated
Homeostasis
Humans
Inflammation
Insulin Resistance
Lipoproteins
Male
Reference Values
Smoke
Smoking
Aspartate Aminotransferases
C-Reactive Protein
Carcinoembryonic Antigen
Cholesterol
Cholesterol, HDL
Glucose
Lipoproteins
Smoke