Neuron-specific enolase, thymidine kinase, and tissue polypeptide-specific antigen in diagnosis and response to chemotherapy of small-cell lung cancer

Tumour markers as early predictors of response to chemotherapy in advanced colorectal carcinoma

BACKGROUND

To evaluate the reliability and validity of serum carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA), tissue polypeptide-specific antigen (TPS), vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) and basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF) in monitoring palliative chemotherapy in advanced colorectal cancer (ACRC).

METHODS

Serum was prospectively collected from 87 patients with ACRC treated with first-line 5-fluorouracil and leucovorin before and 2, 4 and 10 weeks after induction.

RESULTS

Eight patients had normal baseline TPS levels, and these patients had a favourable outcome with prolonged survival and a higher rate of objective responses than patients with elevated TPS levels. At 10 weeks, all responders had a decreasing TPS value. The sensitivity for a decrease of >25% using TPS was 83% and 86% for objective and subjective responses, respectively, and the specificity was 65% and 72%, respectively. CEA had, in the same setting, a sensitivity of 45% and 46%, respectively, and the specificity was 88%. VEGF was elevated in 54% of the patients and bFGF in 15% of the patients. The VEGF values decreased during therapy in 94% of the patients, but the changes in serial VEGF values did not correlate with survival or response. Tumour markers used together did not enhance the predictive values of TPS alone.

CONCLUSIONS

Repeated measurements of CEA, VEGF and bFGF in serum are of limited value in monitoring chemotherapy in ACRC. TPS seems to be of greater interest, but does not predict exactly which patients are going to have a positive outcome of palliative chemotherapy.

Serum biomarkers of non-neuron-endocrine origin in small-cell lung cancer: a 16-year study on carcinoembryonic antigen, tissue polypeptide antigen and lactate dehydrogenase

BACKGROUND

Biomarkers of non-neuron-endocrine origin are measured only occasionally in the sera of patients with small-cell lung cancer (SCLC). An exception to this rule is carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA), for which, however, there is no consistent evidence. Based on such a premise, we decided to review the Cuneo Lung Cancer Study Group 16-year-experience with non-neuron-endocrine markers in SCLC.

METHODS

a total of 619 CEA, 621 tissue polypeptide antigen (TPA), and 616 lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) serum assays were obtained from 160 consecutive SCLC at diagnosis, during, and after treatment. Demographic, clinical, laboratory, and tumoral correlates were also available for another 25 pretreatment and 14 posttreatment variables.

RESULTS

bivariate correlation analyses showed that LDH and TPA were significantly related to each other, and both of them were also correlated with disease extent, and treatment response. LDH correlation indexes were higher than that of TPA, especially those regarding the parameters of disease extent. CEA was correlated only with the category of treatment response. Receiver-operating characteristic (ROC) analysis confirmed the correlation between stage disease at diagnosis and both LDH (P = 0.000) and TPA (P = 0.002), while the treatment failure was better recognized by TPA (P = 0.000). In univariate analysis, both LDH and TPA were correlated with survival (P = 0.000 and 0.092, respectively); however, only LDH remained significant in multivariate analysis (P = 0.012).

CONCLUSIONS

the evidence from this study does not suggest a routine CEA test in SCLC. LDH remains particularly useful and it should be kept in use. Finally, data on TPA is insufficient to advocate its systematic use in this type of malignancy.