Abstract
Immunosuppressive acidic protein (TAP, Matsuda et al. 1976) is a glycoprotein, having a molecular weight of 59, 000, described to be increased in tumor-bearing mice and in patients with malignancy.
In the present study, serum TAP concentration was determined in 409 patients with various malignancies and in 59 patients with non-malignant diseases. Raised levels of serum TAP were observed in 62.3, 46.0, and 32.7%, respectively, of the patients with carcinoma of the lung, the stomach and the breast, prior to surgery. On the other hand, elevation rate of TAP in the advanced cases of carcinoma of the lung, the stomach, and the breast were 73.0, 80.0 and 70.2%, respectively. Patients with hepatocellular carcinoma had relatively low positivity compared with other malignancies. Analyses of ai-acid glycoprotein and TAP in the same serum specimen showed the positive correlation.
We may conclude that IAP appears to serve as a marker for malignancy.
