CYFRA 21-1 serum levels in women with adnexal masses and inflammatory diseases

Abstract The aim of the present study was to evaluate the clinical usefulness of the cytokeratin marker CYFRA 21-1 as a screening marker for ovarian cancer, as a predictive marker in patients with adnexal masses and as a prognostic marker in women suffering from ovarian cancer. In order to determine the specificity of the CYFRA 21-1 test, we have investigated CYFRA 21-1 serum levels in several benign conditions. This retrospective study comprises 37 patients suffering from ovarian cancer FIGO stages Ia-III. Sera from patients with benign ovarian cysts, endometriosis, pelvic inflammatory disease, inflammatory bowel disease and liver cirrhosis were evaluated in 90, 10, 38, 10 and 20 cases respectively. With a sensitivity of 41% and a specificity of 95%, CYFRA 21-1 was not suitable as a screening marker for ovarian cancer. Although CYFRA 21-1 was able to discriminate between ovarian cancer and benign adnexal tumours (univariate regression model, P = 0.0001), CYFRA 21-1 did not reveal additional information to CA 125 in a multivariate regression analysis (P = 0.06). CYFRA 21-1 serum levels were elevated in benign conditions such as liver cirrhosis, but not in endometriosis and inflammatory diseases. In ovarian cancer patients, elevated CYFRA 21-1 serum levels before therapy were associated with a poor overall and disease-free survival (log-rank test, P = 0.02 and log-rank test, P = 0.005 respectively). CYFRA 21-1, while obviously not suitable for screening or differential diagnosis of adnexal masses, could be useful as an additional prognostic factor in ovarian cancer patients. This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution Access options Subscribe to this journal Receive 24 print issues and online access 251,40 € per year only 10,48 € per issue Buy this article - Purchase on SpringerLink - Instant access to the full article PDF. 39,95 € Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout Similar content being viewed by others Author information Authors and Affiliations Rights and permissions About this article Cite this article Tempfer, C., Hefler, L., Heinzl, H. et al. CYFRA 21-1 serum levels in women with adnexal masses and inflammatory diseases. Br J Cancer 78, 1108–1112 (1998). https://doi.org/10.1038/bjc.1998.636 Issue date: DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/bjc.1998.636 This article is cited by - A high serum level of M65 is associated with tumour aggressiveness and an unfavourable prognosis for epithelial ovarian cancer Cancer Chemotherapy and Pharmacology (2013)