1990 Volume 19 Issue 4 Pages 389-398
Serum levels of three tumor markers, CA50, sialyl SSEA-1 and Dupan-2 were determined in parallel with CA19-9 using serum samples from patients with various diseases including 170 patients with pancreatic cancer and up to 212 normal subjects. The objective was to determine whether any of those markers could compensate for the clinical drawbacks of CA19-9. None of these markers in a single determination was superior to CA19-9 in sensitivity and efficiency for the diagnosis of pancreatic cancer and the diagnostic efficiency of CA50 was almost comparable to that of CA19-9. Sialyl SSEA-1 was able to supplement CA19-9 to some extent in enhancing diagnostic specificity. No marker was superior to CA19-9 in the diagnosis of 17 patients with resectable pancreatic cancer. The combined use of CA19-9, sialyl SSEA-1 and Dupan-2 or of CA50, sialyl SSEA-1 and Dupan-2 increased the sensitivity but not the specificity. Thus, the diagnostic efficiency of these markers in combination was considered comparable to that of a single determination of CA19-9.
