Abstract
Pleural effusion levels of carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA), tissue polypeptide antigen (TPA), adenosine deaminase (ADA), ferritin, β2 microglobulin and sialic acid were measured in 56 cases of primary lung cancer, 35 cases of metastatic tumors, 49 cases of tuberculous pleurisy and 62 cases of miscellaneous pleural diseases.
The investigations attempted to discriminate between carcinomatous and tuberculous pleurisies.
Carcinomatous pleural effusions had significantly higher levels of CEA and TPA than tuberculous effusions (p<0.05). On the other hand, ADA and β2MG were significantly higher in tuberculous pleural fluids (p<0.01). The first two markers had high specificity for malignant pleural effusions, while the specificity of the other two markers were high for tuberculous pleurisy and empyema. Ferritin and sialic acid had a higher sensitivity in both groups, but their specificity was low and they appeared to hold little potential for clinical investigations.
Consequently, the study suggests that pleural effusion CEA and TPA assay may be useful in demonstrating malignant pleurisies, while ADA and β2MG in detecting pleural fluids of tuberculous origin.
