Abstract
With the use of a newly developed and convenient enzymatic method, tissue, urine and blood polyamine (diamine, spermidine and spermine) levels were evaluated as a tumor marker of renal cell carcinoma (RCC) in 50 cases with the disease. Furthermore, blood and urine polyamines were periodically determined and evaluated as a follow-up marker. The pretreatment three polyamine levels in tissue, blood and urine of the patients were all significantly higher than those of the controls. However, because of their low sensitivities, they were not always decisive for biochemical diagnosis of RCC. Tissue spermidine levels were increased with the advance of the stages. Tissue diamine level also showed a good correlation with the pathological grade. Tissue diamine was found to predict distant metastasis. Blood spermidine and urine diamine were useful as follow-up markers. In conclusion, combined determination of tissue, blood and urine polyamine levels was thought to be useful as tumor markers of RCC.
