Glycoprotein detects early-stage ovarian cancer

Serum levels of YKL-40, a secreted glycoprotein, are more effective than CA125 and CA15-3 levels at detecting early-stage ovarian cancer.

Dr. Jakob Dupont of the Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in New York and colleagues performed enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays for serum levels of YKL-40 in blood samples from 46 healthy women, 61 women at high risk for ovarian cancer, 33 women with benign gynecologic disorders, and 50 preoperative patients subsequently diagnosed with predominantly early-stage ovarian cancer. The investigators also measured serum CA125 and CA15-3 levels.’Serum YKL-40 levels distinguished normal individuals and high-risk patients from ovarian cancer patients very reliably,’ the authors report in the August 15th issue of the Journal of Clinical Oncology. They note that levels were elevated in 72% of the women with ovarian cancer, while CA125 levels were elevated in only 46% and CA15-3 levels in only 26%.Furthermore, YKL-40 was abnormal in 65% of women with stage I and stage II cancer, whereas CA125 and CA15-3 were elevated in only 35% and 13%, respectively.The YKL assay ‘has the advantage of being commercially available, easily reproducible, and inexpensive,’ the authors add.’Additional prospective studies of YKL-40 as a serum marker are warranted to define the performance of the marker throughout the history of an ovarian cancer patient, including preoperative, postoperative, chemotherapy, and tumor-monitoring periods.'(Source: J Clin Oncol 2004;22:3330-3339: Reuters Health News: Oncolink: September 2004.)