Role Of HE4 Research Articles

The Role of HE4 in the Follow-Up of Advanced Ovarian, Fallopian Tube, and Primary Peritoneal Cancer-CEEGOG OX-01 Study.

Background: Ovarian, fallopian tube, and primary peritoneal cancers often share clinical characteristics and are typically diagnosed at advanced stages due to nonspecific symptoms. The utility of tumor markers, particularly CA125 and HE4, in the diagnosis and follow-up of these cancers remains an area of active investigation. Objectives: The CEEGOG (Central and Eastern European Gynecologic Oncology Group) OX-01 study aimed to evaluate HE4's role alongside CA125 in follow-up for advanced-stage ovarian, fallopian tube, and primary peritoneal cancers. It assessed the potential for detecting recurrence using marker elevation and imaging methods, examining the necessity of dynamic monitoring and current cut-off values' accuracy for early relapse detection. Methods: In this multicenter prospective cohort study, 117 eligible patients with Stage III-IV cancers were included. Patients had elevated CA125 or HE4 at diagnosis and achieved complete remission after first-line treatment. HE4 and CA125 levels were monitored every 3-4 months in the first two years and every six months thereafter. CT scans were performed if markers exceeded set thresholds or increased by over 20%. Results: During a median follow-up of 13.7 months, 73% of patients relapsed. Median HE4 levels were significantly higher in relapsed patients. A 10 IU/mL increase from baseline in CA125 had a sensitivity of 83% and specificity of 93%, while a 15 pmol/L increase in HE4 had a sensitivity of 74% and specificity of 92% for predicting relapse up to three months before CT scan detection. Conclusions: The study found that dynamic changes in HE4 and CA125 levels, rather than predefined cut-off values, are crucial for early relapse detection. These markers may offer a significant lead time over imaging, potentially enabling earlier intervention. Further research is needed to validate these findings.

Elevated Serum Human Epididymis Protein 4 Is Associated With Disease Activity and Systemic Involvements in Primary Sjögren's Syndrome.

BackgroundWe aimed to investigate the clinical utility of human epididymis protein 4, a tumor biomarker being widely utilized in clinical practice in the diagnosis of ovarian cancer, in primary Sjögren’s Syndrome (pSS).MethodsA total of 109 pSS patients and 113 healthy controls (HCs) were included in the study. HE4 were determined by Roche Cobas E601 electrochemical luminescence analyzer. Clinical and laboratory findings were reviewed, and the relationships between HE4 and clinical parameters were determined by Spearman’s correlation test. The European league against rheumatism Sjögren’s syndrome disease activity index (ESSDAI) was utilized to evaluate disease activity.FindingsThe levels of HE4 were significantly elevated in patients with pSS compared to HCs (103.65 pmol/L vs. 46.52 pmol/L, p<0.001). The levels of HE4 were positively correlated with ESSDAI scores (r=0.462, p<0.001). Significant positive correlations between the levels of HE4 with pulmonary involvements (r=0.442, p<0.001) and renal involvements (r=0.320, p=0.001) were observed. Receiver operating curve (ROC) analysis revealed an optimal cut-off value of 104.90 pmol/L and 128.05 pmol/L for distinguishing patients with pulmonary and renal involvements, with the areas under the ROC curve (AUCs) of 0.778 (95%CI 0.685-0.870, p<0.001) and 0.768 (95%CI 0.646-0.891, p=0.001), respectively. Among patients with pulmonary involvement, the levels of HE4 were positively correlated with the semiquantitative HRCT grade (r=0.417, p=0.016), and negatively correlated with the percentage of forced vital capacity (FVC) (r= -0.460, p=0.047) and diffusing capacity of the lung for carbon monoxide (DLco) (r= -0.623, p=0.004). For patients with renal involvement, HE4 was positively correlated with creatinine (r=0.588, p=0.021) and negatively correlated with estimated glomerular filtration rate (r= -0.599, p=0.030).ConclusionsOur findings demonstrated a novel role of HE4 in clinical stratification of pSS, suggesting that introducing HE4 to the current pSS test panel may provide additional diagnostic value, particularly in evaluating disease activity and pulmonary/renal involvements.

Prospective study of the role of HE4 and CA125 in treatment and follow-up in ovarian cancer patients

Introduction: Epithelial Ovarian Cancer, tubal- and peritoneal cancer (EOC) is still the major cause of death in gynecological cancer. The outcome of primary surgery is an important prognostic factor. The primary aim of this study was to study the utility of HE4 and CA125 in monitoring the response of chemotherapy during treatment and in predicting prognosis and recurrence during follow-up. We have also evaluated the role of HE4 as a predictor of the result of surgical intervention. Methods: Seventy-eight patients scheduled for chemotherapy were monitored with serum HE4 and CA125 during treatment and follow-up. In 39 patients samples for tumor markers were also obtained prior to surgical intervention. Results: Both HE4 and CA125 decreased in response to treatment. PFS and OS were strongly dependent on HE4 levels prior to start of chemotherapy with significantly prolonged PFS and OS when HE4 levels were under upper reference limit of 82pmol/L (P=0.018 resp. P&lt;0.001). The levels of HE4 correlated with primary surgical outcome with significantly lower postoperative HE4 in the radically operated group (P&lt;0.001). An increase in HE4 and/or CA125, signals a recurrence 3-6months before diagnosis. Median levels for both HE4 and AC125 before start, during and at the end of treatment were significantly higher for platinum resistant patients (P&lt;0.005). Conclusion: Both tumor markers are valuable in monitoring the response of chemotherapy as well as in predicting recurrence during follow-up. Postoperative HE4 holds promise as an objective marker to evaluate the result of surgery and is highly predictive for future prognosis.

Abstract B33: Genomic analysis of immunosuppressive and proangiogenic genes in recombinant HE4 treated immune cells and implications for T-cell cytotoxicity in ovarian cancer cell co-culture

Abstract Objective: To determine the effect of HE4 on expression of immune-related genes in CD8+ T cells and explore the role of HE4 in immunosuppression and angiogenesis in epithelial ovarian cancer (EOC). Methods: Tissue HE4 levels and T cell counts were determined by immunohistochemistry (IHC). Recombinant HE4 (rHE4)-mediated gene expression in CD8+ T cells was measured by qPCR array. Cytokine levels were determined using a human cytokine array. Cell viability of ovarian cancer cells co-cultured with pooled peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) in the presence or absence of rHE4 was determined using MTS cell viability reagent. P-values were determined by unpaired 2-tailed student t test. Activation of STAT3 was evaluated by Western blot, and the interaction of STAT3 and HE4 was queried by immunoprecipitation of STAT3. Finally, HE4 and IL8 levels were measured by IHC in a microarray of human EOC and normal adjacent tissue (NAT), and levels were correlated using Spearman Rank test. Results: Tissue HE4 levels correlated with CD8+ T cell counts in EOC. rHE4 treatment of CD8+ T cells upregulated expression of a panel of immunosuppressive and proangiogenic genes, including VEGF, HIF1A, STAT3, IDO1, FOXP3, and IL8. IL8 was most robustly upregulated (99-fold vs control). HE4 also resulted in alterations in cytokine levels in ovarian cancer cells co-cultured with PBMCs. OVCAR8 and SKOV3 ovarian cancer cell lines were treated with rHE4, and levels of phospho-STAT3—a known regulator of IL8—were measured. HE4 was found to activate STAT3 in a time-dependent manner, which occurred in the absence of a physical interaction between HE4 and STAT3. rHE4 treatment of OVCAR8 and SKOV3 cells co-cultured with PBMCs suppressed PBMC-mediated cytotoxicity. Finally, IL8 and HE4 mean levels were elevated in EOC tissue compared to NAT and significantly correlated (R=0.49332; p=0.00142). Conclusions: HE4 upregulates expression of genes involved in promoting a proangiogenic and immunosuppressive microenvironment in EOC, which may play a role in reduced cytotoxic ability of immune cells. Upregulation of IL8 may occur via HE4 regulation of STAT3 signaling. Future directions include testing the effect of HE4 on endothelial cell angiogenesis and determining if STAT3 and VEGF inhibitors modulate HE4 suppression of immune cell cytotoxicity. Citation Format: Nicole James, Jenna Emerson, Ashley Borgstadt, Lindsey Beffa, Anze Urh, Kyukwang Kim, Rakesh Singh, Richard Moore, Paul DiSilvestro, Jennifer Ribeiro. Genomic analysis of immunosuppressive and proangiogenic genes in recombinant HE4 treated immune cells and implications for T-cell cytotoxicity in ovarian cancer cell co-culture [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the AACR Special Conference on Tumor Immunology and Immunotherapy; 2018 Nov 27-30; Miami Beach, FL. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Immunol Res 2020;8(4 Suppl):Abstract nr B33.

Role of HE4, CA125, and ultrasound in risk assessment in pelvic mass patients: Results from a prospective, multicentric study.

5535 Background: Ovarian cancer (OC) lacks of specific symptoms and biomarkers for early diagnosis. Advanced stages are associated with poor survival. CA125 and HE4 are overexpressed in OC. Their r...

The role of HE4 in ovarian cancer follow-up: a review.

The aim of this review was to analyze the state of the art about HE4 and follow-up in patients treated for ovarian cancer. A literature search was conducted in the MEDLINE database using the key words "HE4" and "ovarian cancer" and "recurrence" or "relapse" or "follow up." Seven of 28 clinical studies were selected. Four studies were prospective, and all of them were based on a small number of patients (8-73 women). A failure of HE4 levels to normalize at completion of standard therapy may indicate a poor prognosis, thus suggesting the need of a closer follow-up. Moreover, HE4 showed better sensibility and specificity in the diagnosis of ovarian cancer recurrence with respect to CA-125, being also an earlier indicator of the relapse with a lead time of 5 to 8 months. HE4 showed a better performance in this setting if performed in association with other markers (CA-125, CA-72.4). HE4 seems to be an independent predictive factor for the surgical outcome at secondary cytoreductive surgery and to maintain its prognostic role even after the recurrence. These preliminary data start to suggest a superiority of HE4 over CA-125 in the detection of ovarian cancer recurrence. Moreover, the prognostic role of HE4 could help clinicians to personalize the follow-up program, whereas its predictive role could be useful to plan the treatment of the relapse. The role of HE4 in ovarian cancer follow-up deserves to be further investigated in prospective randomized multicentric studies.

Human Epididymis Protein 4 Inhibits Proliferation of Human Ovarian Cancer Cells Via the Mitogen-Activated Protein Kinase and Phosphoinositide 3-Kinase/AKT Pathways

Human epididymis protein 4 (HE4) is a promising novel biomarker for the detection of epithelial ovarian cancer (EOC). The role of HE4 in EOC tumorigenesis is unclear. This study investigated the cellular and molecular mechanisms of HE4 in ovarian cancer cell proliferation. We generated HE4-overexpressing SKOV3 cells and silenced HE4 gene expression in SKOV3.ip1 cells. We used the cell counting kit 8 assay to evaluate cell proliferation and Western blotting to analyze the expression of proliferation- and apoptosis-associated proteins such as Bax, Bcl-2, and caspase 3. Overexpression of HE4 in SKOV3, an ovarian carcinoma cell line, inhibited cell proliferation, In contrast, HE4 silencing in SKOV3.ip1 cells promoted cell proliferation; however, conditioned medium containing HE4 and human recombinant HE4 protein had no effect on proliferation in both SKOV3 and SKOV3.ip1 cells. Human epididymis protein 4 inhibited MEK, extracellular signal-regulating kinase 1/2, and AKT phosphorylation but promoted c-Jun N-terminal protein kinase 1/2/3 and c-JUN phosphorylation; however, p38 phosphorylation was impaired in HE4-overexpressing and silenced cells. Human epididymis protein 4 had no effect on epidermal growth factor receptor phosphorylation or on the apoptosis-associated proteins Bax, Bcl-2, and caspase 3. Human epididymis protein 4 might play a protective role in the progression of EOC by inhibiting cell proliferation. Antiproliferative activity was mediated by intracellular HE4 and not the secreted protein. Human epididymis protein 4 might inhibit cell proliferation by regulating the mitogen-activated protein kinase and phosphoinositide 3-kinase/AKT signal transduction pathways in vitro.

Use of HE4 and CA125 to predict surgical outcome and for prognostic value for progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS) in primary epithelial ovarian cancer (EOC) patients (pts).

5034 Background: Optimal surgical cytoreduction and response to platinum (P) based chemotherapy (ChTh) remain the cornerstones of therapeutic management of primary EOC. Aim of this study was to analyze the predictive role of HE4 and CA125 as biomarkers (BM) for clinical outcome in primary EOC pts at diagnosis and during subsequent follow-up. Methods: In the European OVCAD project 275 pts with primary EOC were enrolled. Pts were eligible if radical cytoreductive surgery and P-based ChTh were applied. Plasma collected at first diagnosis and 6 months after 1st line ChTh in P-sensitive pts was analyzed for HE4 and CA125 levels using ELISA and Luminex technique, respectively. Results: Complete cytoreduction with no residual tumor disease (RTD) was obtained in 69.9% pts. HE4 and CA125 expression in plasma at first diagnosis correlated with RTD, p = 0.002 and p=0.002, respectively. The sensitivity (SE) and specificity (SP) of the combinative use of both BM in predicting RTD was 64.8% and 73.5%, respectively. Pts having over-expression of both BM in plasma had a 6.1 greater risk for RTD (p&lt;0.001, OR: 6.107, 95% CI 2.41-15.46). P-resistance occurred more frequently when both BM were over-expressed (p=0.028, OR= 3.1, 95%CI 1.13-8.46). Elevated BM levels during follow-up predicted recurrence (SE 90% and SP 71% for CA125 ≥55U/ml; SE 72.7% and SP 81.4% for HE4 ≥150pM) and when HE4 or CA125 were positive, a SE of 86.4% and SP of 72.9% were achieved. Elevated CA125 and HE4 at 6 months following adjuvant therapy was associated with significantly poorer PFS (p&lt;0.001, HR 9.6, 95%CI 3.93-23.44 with elevated HE4 or CA125, and HR=50.52, 95%CI 14.44-176.78, with elevated HE4 and CA125) and OS (p&lt;0.001, HR=7.42 95%CI 1.43-38.42 with elevated HE4 or CA125 and HR=28.38 95%CI 6.50-123.97 with elevated HE4 and CA125). Conclusions: The combinative use of HE4 and CA125 appears to have a significant value in predicting optimal surgical outcome and development of P resistance disease in EOC pts. Elevated plasma levels 6 months after 1st line ChTh significantly correlate with OS and PFS in P-sensitive pts.

Role of HE4, CA72.4, and CA125 in monitoring ovarian cancer

The aim of this study was to investigate the role of biomarkers CA125, HE4, and CA72.4 at diagnosis and throughout the follow-up in patients with epithelial ovarian cancer (EOC). Thirty-nine patients with EOC were deemed eligible, and 20 were followed up. CA125, HE4, and CA72.4 serum levels were determined for all patients at initial diagnosis of EOC. Among these patients, the number of cases with an elevated level of each individual marker was CA125 77 %, HE4 85 %, and CA72.4 72 %. A statistically significant difference was observed between the level of HE4 when compared to CA72.4 (p < 0.02). In the follow-up phase, we observed tumor marker levels fluctuating according to response to chemotherapy. When combining two out of the three biomarkers together, we observed increased values of CA125 and CA72.4 in 55 % of the patients, increased values of CA125 and HE4 in 65 % of the patients, and finally increased HE4 and CA72.4 in 75 % of the patients. A statistically significant difference was observed when combining HE4 and CA72.4, but not CA125 and CA 72.4 (p < 0.002). In conclusion, our study demonstrates that the association of three biomarkers CA125, HE4, and CA72.4 provides a valuable contribution in the follow-up of EOC patients.

Use of HE4 expression in plasma to predict operative outcome in patients with ovarian cancer (OC).

5022 Background: OC is the major cause of death due to gynecological malignancies. Its treatment consists in cytoreductive surgery followed by platinum based chemotherapy. The most important prognostic factor for overall and disease free survival is the residual tumor mass after surgery. Aim of our study is to analyze the role of HE4 in predicting surgical outcome. Methods: Between February 2005 and December 2008 302 consecutive patients with epithelial OC were enrolled. Samples were obtained from the European, multicentric prospective project OVCAD. OC patients were eligible if radical cytoreductive surgery was performed and standard chemotherapy with paclitaxel and carboplatin was applied. A prospective intra- and postoperative documentation was used. Plasma and ascites samples were collected before or during surgery. HE4 concentrations were determined using the ELISA technique. Results: Median age at the time of diagnosis was 58 years (range 18-85 years). Most patients presented with advanced stage dis...