Abstract
The tumor marker CA 15-3 is one of the most import reliable for metastatic breast cancer monitoring. While it is generally assessed in serum of patients, blood sampling is an invasive method compared to saliva sampling which is simple and could be an alternative to blood according to many studies. The aim of this investigation was to assess the relationship between serum and salivary concentrations of the protein CA 15-3 in patients with breast cancer and healthy asymptomatic volunteers. A case-control study was conducted with 60 women: 29 breast cancer patients from the Maternity Hospital Souissi Rabat (Morocco) and 31 healthy asymptomatic women. The CA 15-3 concentrations in saliva and serum samples were assessed using an enzyme immune assay (EIA kits) and comparison between cases and controls was made by the Mann-Whitney test. The correlation between serum and saliva CA 15-3 concentration was tested using Pearson correlation. The comparison result of CA15-3 concentration in saliva and serum level in cases and controls was not statistically significant (p>0.05). However, the correlation between salivary and serum CA 15-3 concentration was positive and statistically significant (r=0.27, p=0.03). In conclusion, the positive correlation between salivary and serum expression found in our study suggests that saliva could be an alternative to blood sampling to help breast cancer monitoring.
Highlights
Breast cancer is the most common cancer and the second cause of mortality in women worldwide (Jemal et al, 2011; Begum et al, 2012; Ray, 2012)
The tumor marker CA 15-3 is one of the most import reliable for metastatic breast cancer monitoring. While it is generally assessed in serum of patients, blood sampling is an invasive method compared to saliva sampling which is simple and could be an alternative to blood according to many studies. The aim of this investigation was to assess the relationship between serum and salivary concentrations of the protein CA 15-3 in patients with breast cancer and healthy asymptomatic volunteers
There was no significant difference between serum CA 15-3 in patients comparing with healthy women p=0.13
Summary
Breast cancer is the most common cancer and the second cause of mortality in women worldwide (Jemal et al, 2011; Begum et al, 2012; Ray, 2012). Breast cancer mortality level decreased and this has been attributed to: the early diagnosis (characterization of prognosis and diagnosis factors) and the treatment with adjuvant chemotherapy, hormonal therapy and target therapy (Xiaoqiang, 2013). Studies have big interest in tumor markers, substances detected in the circulation of patients with malignant tumors, which could be used in all stages of cancer care (screening, diagnosis, treatment and metastasis prediction) (Porika et al, 2010; Maric et al, 2011). Its use as a diagnostic fluid could have many advantages comparing to serum: saliva collection is noninvasive, simple, can be collected repeatedly without discomfort of patients and could be a reliable way to detect tumor markers and contribute to monitoring the effectiveness of chemotherapy (Navazesh and Christensen, 1982; Streckfus and Bigler, 2005)
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