The utility of tumor marker combination, including serum P53 antibody, in colorectal cancer treatment.

PURPOSES: Serum P53 antibody (S-P53Ab) is reportedly an effective screening tool for cancer. The aim of this study is to investigate the clinical significance of tumor markers combination in colorectal cancer (CRC) patients.

METHODS: Carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA), carbohydrate 19 - 9 (CA19-9), and S-P53Ab levels were measured before tumor resection. Of the CRC patients with primary tumor resection at Kumamoto University Hospital, a total of 244 with available preoperative data for these three tumor markers were eligible for this study. The associations of the tumor markers with clinicopathological factors and the prognosis were examined using univariate and multivariate analyses.

RESULTS: S-P53Ab positivity was strongly correlated with rectal cancer, depth of tumor invasion, lymph node metastasis, and lymphatic invasion. The ratio of S-P53Ab positivity was higher than that of CEA or CA19-9 in patients with stage 0/I disease. S-P53Ab had no power to predict the prognosis (P = 0.786). The patients with combined CEA and CA19-9 positivity had a significantly poorer overall survival than those with positivity for neither or only one, and combined CEA and CA19-9 positivity was an exclusive independent prognostic factor (P = 0.034).

CONCLUSIONS: The clinical significance of S-P53Ab measurement in CRC patients is limited. However, the combination of CEA and CA19-9 levels may be effective for predicting the outcomes of CRC treatment.