Abstract
The aim of this study was to evaluate the clinical significance of serum p53-Abs in gastrointestinal cancer patients. Four-hundred and thirty-three consecutive patients with gastrointestinal cancer (esophageal cancer:147 patients, stomach cancer:135 patients and colorectal cancer:151 patients) were studied for serum p53-Abs by enzyme-linked immunoabsorbent assay before treatment. Conventional tumor markers (CEA, CA19-9, SCC-Ag and CYFRA21-1) were assessed to compare their sensitivities with serum p53-Abs. Serum p53-Abs were positive for 41.5% of the patients with esophageal cancer, 17.8% for stomach cancer patients and 39.7% for colorectal cancer patients. Relatively few patients tested positive for the other tumor markers. Surveillance of serum p53-Abs is superior to the other tumor markers for detecting early gastrointestinal cancer.
