The Diagnostic Significance of CA72-4 in Cancer Patient

Lee, Se Joon; Chung, Jae Bock; Shin, Hyun Seung; Kang, Jin Kyung; Song, Si Young; Park, In Suh

Abstract

BACKGROUND/AIMS: The serum tumor markers, such as CEA and CA19-9, for gastric cancer have been used but their positive rates are not high. In this study the value of a new serum marker, CA72-4, was compared with the serum activities of CEA and CA19-9 in a consecutive series of patients with gastric cancer.
METHODS
Fifty-three patients(35 men and 18 women; mean age, 60 years) with histologically diagnosed adenocarcinoma of the stomach, were evaluated. Serum TAG-72 antigen was determined by a double determinant radioimmunometric assay kit, CA72-4, and serum CEA and CA19-9 levels were also measured.
RESULTS
CA72-4 had a very high specificity(100%) for benign gastric disease. In gastric carcinoma, the positive rate of CA72-4 was 28% and was not so different to that of CA19-9, 34%, and CEA, 32%. There was significantly increased positive rates of CA72-4, CA19-9 and CEA in patients with advanced gastric cancer than those with early gastric cancer(p<0.01) but no significant difference in CA72-4, CA19-9 and CEA. There was no significant difference in positive rates of CA72-4, CA19-9 and CEA in patients with distant metastases or lymph node metastases than those without metastases. The positive rates of combined use of serum CA72-4 and CA19-9, CA72-4 and CEA, and CA72-4, CA19-9 and CEA were 43%, 45% and 51%.
CONCLUSIONS
The results of this study suggest that CA72-4 is not better in the serodiagnosis of gastric cancer than conventional tumor markers, CA19-9 and CEA. However, despite considerable numbers of advanced gastric cancer patients with positive CA72-4, there is little clinical significance of CA72-4 in the serodiagnosis of gastric cancer.