Prostate-specific antigen levels from completely sectioned, clinically benign, whole prostates

Article Abstract:

Cancer of the prostate is especially common among men over the age of 40. A protein called prostate-specific antigen (PSA) which can be measured in the blood, is increased in cases of prostate cancer. PSA is not a true tumor marker, however, since it is made by normal prostate tissue and many conditions other than cancer can cause elevated blood levels. PSA might become more useful as a clinical indicator if more were known about the factors that the variation of its blood levels. For this reason, a study was conducted on 105 consecutive autopsy cases. None of the subjects in this study had any indication of prostate cancer. In fact, all subjects had a digital examination within the last year that yielded no suspicious findings. The prostate glands removed from these subjects were weighed and then microscopically examined. Despite the absence of any prostate cancer symptoms in these patients, 37 cancers were identified by microscopic examination. Twenty-eight of these were less than one milliliter in volume. The measurement of PSA in the subjects' blood revealed a wide variation, and high amounts were found to be associated with benign conditions such as chronic inflammation and hyperplasia (excessive tissue growth). The majority of subjects with prostate cancers smaller than one milliliter did not have any increase in PSA in their blood. In contrast, prostate cancers larger than one milliliter almost always were accompanied by increased amounts of PSA in the blood. Therefore, the majority of prostate cancers less than one milliliter in size are not revealed by increased amounts of PSA in the blood. However, an elevation in PSA may indicate the presence of a larger prostate cancer. Furthermore, the higher the amount of PSA in the blood, the greater the likelihood that cancer is the cause. (Consumer Summary produced by Reliance Medical Information, Inc.)

Diagnosis, Physiological aspects, Prostate cancer, Tumor antigens, Prostate diseases, Prostatic diseases

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Expression of ras oncogene p21 protein in early gastric carcinoma and adjacent gastric epithelia

Article Abstract:

Oncogenes are genes in human cells which, when activated, may be related to the development of cancer. They are sometimes activated as well during fetal development. Oncogenes, like other genes, contain the code which directs the production of specific proteins, and the ras family is one such group of proteins and oncogenes. Because the ras genes and proteins may be involved in the early stages of carcinogenesis, the levels of one of them, ras p21, has been measured in early gastric (stomach) cancers, in adjacent premalignant cells, and in normal gastric cells. Two types of gastric cancer have been postulated, an intestinal type and a diffuse or gastric type. Both types were examined in this study. Compared with normal cells, the levels of p21 were elevated in both types of early cancer cells and in adjacent premalignant cells with dysplasia (abnormal cell structure) associated with diffuse type but not intestinal type cancer. Interestingly, the levels of p21 were greater in premalignant cells than in cancerous cells, suggesting that p21 does not correlate with extent of cancerous changes. In fact, not all malignant cells contained p21. The data suggest that increased levels of ras p21 may be related to early events of gastric cancer development, but its continuous presence is probably not essential for maintenance of the cancerous cell. Also, the results indicate that the tests for the presence of p21 would not be useful as diagnostic markers for stomach cancer. (Consumer Summary produced by Reliance Medical Information, Inc.)

Evaluation, Stomach cancer, Oncogenes, Ras genes

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Alpha-1-acid glucoprotein in ovarian cancer with a reference to immunosuppressive acidic protein and cancer antigen 125

Article Abstract:

An effective way to evaluate tumor destruction during chemotherapy would be valuable in treating many malignant diseases, especially ovarian cancer. For this reason, much attention has been paid to cancer antigen 125 (CA 125), a protein found in the blood of patients with ovarian cancer, that can be measured very precisely using immunological methods. Although CA 125 is a useful measure of ovarian cancer prior to treatment, false negatives (failures to correctly identify tumor) are observed in some patients after chemotherapy has begun. To determine if alpha-1-acid glucoprotein (a1-AG), another marker antigen, might be more useful in monitoring tumor cells, measurements were made of a1-AG protein and CA 125 in 140 patients, in 60 cases prior to surgery and in 80 before second-look surgery to observe residual tumor. All ovarian cancer patients with elevated a1-AG also had elevated CA 125. Like CA 125, a1-AG proved to be an effective marker prior to treatment, but less effective afterward. Since a1-AG does not provide any information that is not already available using CA 125 as a marker, its use cannot be recommended. (Consumer Summary produced by Reliance Medical Information, Inc.)

Analysis, Ovarian cancer, Chemotherapy, Ovarian tumors

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