Prognostic significance of carcinoembryonic antigen, carbohydrate antigen 19-9, alpha fetoprotein, and beta human chorionic gonadotropin in gastric cancer patients treated with surgery and chemotherapy regimen

Abstract

Objective: The objective was to evaluate the potential usefulness of tumor markers carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA), carbohydrate antigen 19-9 (CA19-9), alpha fetoprotein (AFP), and beta human chorionic gonadotropin (β-HCG) in predicting tumor response in gastric cancer patients after treatment (surgery, chemo, or radiotherapy). Materials and Methods: Fifty patients suffering from gastric cancer and 50 normal healthy subjects were included in the study. CEA, AFP, and β-HCG were estimated using commercial IMMULITE-2000 a solid phase, two-site sequential chemiluminescent immunometric assay, and CA19-9 using commercial calbiotech CA19-9 enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) kit, based on solid phase ELISA. Statistical analysis was done using SPSS Software version 10.0 (SPSS Inc., USA) and MedCalc to estimate the significance of observed differences. Results: Mean serum value of CEA, CA19-9, AFP, and β-HCG were significantly higher as compared to healthy control subjects before therapy. After therapy the mean serum level of CEA, CA19-9, AFP, and β-HCG were significantly higher in progressive disease an insignificant difference was seen in stable condition, and significantly lower results were seen in improved condition as compared to levels before therapy. Conclusion: The measurement of CEA, CA19-9, AFP, and β-HCG blood levels during the course of gastric cancer treatment has valuable clinical significance for the efficacy of treatment.