Three Cases of Falsely Elevated Levels of Serum SCC Antigen Due to Formation of High Molecular Weight SCC Antigen

Abstract

We determined levels of squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) antigen in sera obtained from three patients with sustained high levels but without evidence of carcinoma. High-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) revealed two to three SCC antigen peaks, one of which eluted at the authentic molecular weight, and the others at a larger one. The sera were not adsorbed by antibodies to IgG, IgA or IgM, and were not inactivated by heating at 56° for 30 min. We demonstrated that the rise in serum SCC antigen in patients without carcinoma could be attributed to the larger molecular weight forms.