Serum sICAM-1 (soluble intercellular adhesion molecule-1) and M-CSF (macrophage colony-stimulating growth factor) throughout monitoring of 34 non-serous ovarian cancers

PURPOSE

Evaluation of serum ICAM-1 (soluble intercellular adhesion molecule-1) and M-CSF (macrophage colony-stimulating growth factor) determinations for monitoring patients with non-serous ovarian cancers.

METHODS

ELISA assay of sICAM-1 (cut-off 235 ng/ml) and M-CSF (cut-off 450 pg/ml) in 190 blood samples from 34 patients.

RESULTS

In pre-treatment sera (n=17), sICAM-1 was over the cut-off in 12/17 (70.6%), M-CSF in 14/17 (82.4%) and CA 125 in 12/16 (75%). sICAM-1 was related only to age at diagnosis (p=0.0008). M-CSF was positively correlated to FIGO stage (p=0.04) CA 125 was elevated in 90.9% of adenocarcinomas (p=0.033 vs other). None of the 3 biological markers were related to other clinico-pathological criteria. Among disease-free patients, higher median concentrations of sICAM-1 and M-CSF were recorded under adjuvant treatment than without (p=0.014, and p=0.08, respectively). After relapse, the highest levels of sICAM-1, M-CSF and CA 125 were observed in progressive disease (46/53, 86.8% (p=0.014), 51/53 96.2% (p=0.008) and 46/52 88.5% (p>0.05), respectively).

CONCLUSION

In non-serous ovarian cancers, sICAM-1 although elevated in most cases, is not useful for monitoring. Serum M-CSF is a valuable marker when ovarian tumours do not express CA 125.

A multicenter phase II study with triptorelin (sustained-release LHRH agonist) in advanced or recurrent endometrial carcinoma: a French anticancer federation study

The objective of this phase II multicenter study was to assess the efficacy and tolerance of triptorelin (a sustained-release LHRH agonist) in advanced or recurrent endometrial cancer. A total of 101 monthly intramuscular injections were administered to 24 eligible patients (median number/patient = 3; range 1-12). Mainly due to progression, only 16 patients received 3 or more injections. Among the 23 evaluable patients, 1 complete and 1 partial response (response rate of 8.7%) and 5 disease stabilizations were observed, often of long duration, but never in an irradiated area or after progestogens treatment failure. Median survival for eligible patients was 7.2 months (range: 1-36 months). Only grade 1 toxicities possibly related to the treatment were observed in 4 patients. In conclusion, triptorelin was safe, well tolerated, and easily manageable, and the very low toxicity did not impair the quality of life in these patients with a very poor prognosis. Although the response rate was disappointing, several patients showed early evidence of efficacy which may be of long duration. Response rates range between 0 and 45% in different published studies. Additional studies with stricter inclusion criteria and a larger sample size are necessary to better evaluate the role of LHRH agonists in endometrial adenocarcinomas.

Cancer of the uterine cervix: sensitivity and specificity of serum Cyfra 21.1 determinations

PURPOSE

The purpose was to evaluate the usefulness of serum Cyfra 21.1 assay for the monitoring of patients with uterine cervix cancer.

METHODS

Pre-treatment sera and complete follow-up of the patients were available for SCC and Cyfra 21.1 for 79 patients Another group of 50 patients was studied to evaluate the specificity, sensitivity, negative or positive predictive values of the markers. The cut-off value for Cyfra 21.1 (1.1 ng/ml) was established by ROC curve analysis.

RESULTS

A positive or negative concordance between SCC and Cyfra 21.1 was observed in 65.8% of the cases. Positive SCC and negative Cyfra 21.1 were found in 22.8% of the sera, while the inverse was observed in 11.4% of the cases. The mean concentrations of SCC and Cyfra 21.1 were correlated to FIGO stages, with Cyfra 21.1 being elevated in 100% of stages III and IV. Cyfra 21.1 was also correlated with the extension of the cancer, and to the presence of metastases. The mean concentrations of both markers were significantly higher in the sera of patients with constant progression (P < or = 0.0019). Analysis of 186 results from 91 patients followed-up with a median of 3.29 years showed a sensitivity of 89.5% for Cyfra 21.1, 75.0% for SCC, and a specificity of 86.4% and 99.1%, respectively. The positive predictive values were 91.9% for Cyfra 21.1 and 98.3% for SCC, and the negative predictive values 92.7% and 85.2%, respectively. Median lead times, calculated from the records of 18 selected patients with complete resection of the tumour, were found to be 60 days for Cyfra 21.1 and 50 days for SCC (P > 0.05).

CONCLUSION

In cervical cancer Cyfra 21.1 is very well-correlated to the tumour burden and the extent of the disease. In the case of recurrence, this marker rises more often than SCC. We therefore propose the use of Cyfra 21.1 for the monitoring of cervical cancer.