BACKGROUND The role of the tumor marker CA 19-9 in differentiating benign from malignant masses in chronic pancreatitis has not been extensively studied. AIM This study aims at assessing the accuracy of CA 19-9 in differentiating inflammatory head masses in chronic pancreatitis from superimposed carcinomas on chronic pancreatitis. METHODS The data of 84 consecutive patients who had mass les...

BACKGROUND The clinical value of carbohydrate antigen (CA) 19-9 in gastric cancer is controversial. We evaluated the clinicopathologic and prognostic value of CA 19-9 in gastric cancer. METHODS A literature search was conducted in PubMed and Embase databases. Odds ratios (ORs), risk ratios (RR), hazard ratios (HRs), and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were used as effect measures. RESULTS Th...

The female genital tract is rarely involved by coccidioidomycosis. We describe a woman with disseminated coccidioidomycosis involving the female pelvic organs associated with elevated tumor markers CA 125 and CA 19-9. She had no fevers and the initial clinical suspicion was a malignancy because of the elevated tumor markers. At exploratory laparotomy a total abdominal hysterectomy and bilateral...

The serum levels of CA 19-9 and DU-PAN-2 antigens and their expression in tumor tissue were examined in 22 pancreatic cancer patients and the results were correlated with the Lewis (Le) blood group phenotypes of the individuals. In tumor tissue, CA 19-9 was expressed in 17 of 22 (77%) specimens. The negative cases included three patients with Lea-b-, one with Lea+b- and the other with Lea-b+ ph...

A 50 year old man is described with hepatic dysfunction and chronic pancreatitis in whom greatly increased concentrations of the pancreatic tumour marker CA 19-9 combined with an abnormal appearance at endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography lead to the false suspicion of pancreatic carcinoma. CA 19-9 concentrations should be interpreted with caution in patients with intrinsic liver dise...

OBJECTIVE We and others have previously suggested that pretreatment levels of CA 19-9 correlate with overall survival (OS) among patients with advanced pancreatic cancer treated with gemcitabine. We sought to confirm the prognostic role of the pretreatment level of CA 19-9 in patients with advanced pancreatic cancer treated with chemotherapy. METHODS We retrospectively identified 50 patients ...

Background: Cathepsin B and L (CATB, CATL), urokinase-type plasminogen activator (UPA) and its inhibitor PAI-1 play an important part in colorectal cancer invasion. The tumor marker and prognostic impact of these proteases has not been evaluated in the same experimental setting, and compared with that of CEA and CA-19-9. Methods: Protease, CEA, CA 19-9 serum or plasma levels were determined in ...

Tumor marker carbohydrate antigen 19-9 (CA 19-9) level has gained clinical significance in gastrointestinal malignancies and in various solid and cystic diseases. Dysplastic kidney is a congenital abnormality resulting from atresia of the ureteral bud during the embryogenesis which can be unilateral or bilateral. We report unilateral dysplastic kidney with extremely large cyst diagnosed by rout...

The study was conducted to evaluate the prevalence of abnormal levels of several serum tumour markers in an institutionalized elderly population. Serum tumour markers assay of carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA), the carbohydrate antigens CA 19-9, CA 72-4 and CA 15-3 (Enzymun-test, Boehringer Mannheim GmbH Diagnostic), alpha-fetoprotein (AFP) and prostate specific antigen (PSA) (Abbot Diagnostic Div...

Gastric duplication cyst (GDC) in an adult can have several clinical presentations. A review of the literature showed previously reported cases of GDC presenting as pancreatic pseudocyst or with greatly raised concentrations of carbohydrate antigen 19-9 (CA 19-9). It is often difficult to discriminate GDC from pancreatic cystic tumour, in particular pancreatic mucinous cystadenoma, in which con...