Plasma and salivary thiocyanate in gastric cancer.

Previous studies (Jakobi, Jakobi, and Cavalcanti, 1961) have suggested that the concentration of thiocyanate in the saliva of patients suffering from oesophageal or gastric cancer is unusually low compared with that in normal subjects or patients with peptic ulcer. If this were confirmed the measurement of salivary thiocyanates might provide a screening test for gastric cancer. Salivary thiocyanates have, therefore, been measured in a further series of subjects and some observations have been made on plasma thiocyanate concentration and the changes in plasma levels in response to oral doses of thiocyanate.