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The diagnostic role of human epididymis protein 4 and serum amyloid-A in early-stage endometrial cancer patients

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Tumor Biology

Abstract

The aim of this study was to evaluate the prognostic and predictive efficacy of the human epididymis secretory protein 4 (HE4) and serum amyloid-A (S-AA) together with the other tumor markers (CA 125, CA 15–3, CEA, and CA 19–9) in endometrial cancer patients. The study group consisted of 64 patients with defined stage and grade of endometrial cancer and 60 women with benign uterine diseases. Thirty-four healthy women were defined as the control group. Fasting blood samples were collected prior to surgery and tumor marker levels were determined in blood samples by E170 autoanalyzer. S-AA concentrations were measured by particle-enhanced immunonephelometry. Preoperative serum HE4 and S-AA levels were significantly higher in endometrial cancer patients than in controls, whereas the other measured parameters were not significantly different. Serum levels of HE4 were related to both the stage and grade of tumor. The best cutoff point for HE4 was determined to be 59.7 pmol/L; with 75 % sensitivity and 65.5 % specificity. For S-AA, the cutoff point was 8.8 U/mL, with 68.7 % sensitivity and 58.6 % specificity. The combination of HE4, CA 125, CEA, and S-AA raised the sensitivity to 84 %. Preoperative measurement of serum HE4 and S-AA may be of help in early detection of endometrial cancer. Preoperative screening with these markers may provide important information about the patient’s outcome and prognosis.

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Abbreviations

HE4:

Human epididymis secretory protein 4

S-AA:

Serum amyloid A

CEA:

Carcinoembryonic antigen

FIGO:

International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics

ROC:

Receiver operating characteristic

PPV:

Positive predictive value

NPV:

Negative predictive value

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Acknowledgments

This study was supported by the Research Fund of Istanbul University, project no. 3647.

Conflicts of interest

None.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Biochemistry, Istanbul Faculty of Medicine, Istanbul University, 34093, Çapa, Istanbul, Turkey

    Beyhan Omer, Sema Genc, Zeynep Kusku-Kiraz & Figen Gurdol

  2. Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Istanbul Faculty of Medicine, Istanbul University, Istanbul, Turkey

    Ozguc Takmaz & Sinan Berkman

  3. Department of Public Health, Istanbul Faculty of Medicine, Istanbul University, Istanbul, Turkey

    Ahmet Dirican

Authors
  1. Beyhan Omer
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  2. Sema Genc
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  3. Ozguc Takmaz
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  4. Ahmet Dirican
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  5. Zeynep Kusku-Kiraz
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  6. Sinan Berkman
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  7. Figen Gurdol
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Sema Genc.

Additional information

All procedures were carried on according to the Helsinki Declaration 2000 and the study protocol was approved by the Local Ethical Committee of Istanbul University.

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Omer, B., Genc, S., Takmaz, O. et al. The diagnostic role of human epididymis protein 4 and serum amyloid-A in early-stage endometrial cancer patients. Tumor Biol. 34, 2645–2650 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13277-013-0814-z

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s13277-013-0814-z

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