[Clinical analysis of benign pelvic mass with high serum levels of CA(125)].

OBJECTIVE: To investigate serum CA(125) levels and the value of serum CA(125) in differential diagnosis of benign pelvic mass. METHODS: We retrospectively analyzed 492 patients with benign pelvic mass, including 237 cases of benign ovarian tumor and 255 other benign gynecological diseases. Sixty cases of ovarian epithelial cancer were randomly chosen as control group. RESULTS: The median of serum CA(125) in patients with pelvic tuberculosis, uterine adenomyosis, ovarian endometriosis and ovarian fibroma were all higher than the cut-off level of CA(125) (35 kU/L), being 465.0, 88.9, 59.0 and 44.5 kU/L, respectively. Those of ovarian epithelial cancer patients were significantly higher than in benign pelvic mass (P < 0.01). The highest value of CA(125) among all the benign cases was 1281.0 kU/L, which was seen in a case of ovarian thecoma. The highest median value was 465.0 kU/L, detected in a patient with pelvic tuberculosis. CONCLUSIONS: Serum CA(125) levels in some benign pelvic mass are higher than the cut-off level of CA(125), such as pelvic tuberculosis, uterine adenomyosis, ovarian fibroma and ovarian endometriosis. The medians of serum CA(125) in benign pelvic mass are much lower than in ovarian epithelial cancer. Serum CA(125) is of significance in the differential diagnosis between hysteromyoma and uterine adenomyosis.