ABSTRACT
Since it was reported that cancer exhibits a greater rate of aerobic glycolysis than normal tissue, there have been numerous efforts to identify enzymatic defects in cancer tissue. Attempts have been made to use enzyme assays as a diagnostic tool in cancer and cancer follow up. Abnormal enzyme activity patterns of human plasma frequently reflect those of tissues in disease conditions. In our study, human serum acid phosphatase [AcP], lactic dehydrogenase [LDH], and alkaline phosphatase [AIP] were studied biochemically to evaluate the total enzyme activity among fifty cancer patients in comparison to twenty healthy individuals. Cancer cases involved cases of breast, liver, bone, prostate, lung and oral cancers. The results showed that 46% of cancer patients had elevated levels of AcP, 68% had elevated levels of LDH and 36% had elevated levels of AIP. Since cancer reflect to a greater extent the environmental exposure background, the intensity of human serum O [6]-alkyl guanine DNA-alkyl transferase [ATase] was detected by western blotting immuno-assay in sera of cancer patients in comparison to healthy individuals. The levels of ATase were higher among cancerous patients. The results suggest that the assay of enzymes in serum of cancer patients may serve as a useful tool in the diagnosis and follow-up of cancer and to study the degree of cancer progression or the feasibility of cancer treatment