RESUMO
The determination of alterations in the p53 gene and in the p53 protein is often used in tumour diagnosis and for prognosis. However, the analysis of p53 gene or protein alterations requires tumour material. Patients with a variety of different tumours have p53 autoantibodies in the sera, saliva, cyst fluids and in the ascites. In general p53 autoantibodies are associated with a malignant disease with a bad prognosis although a few reports also showed that p53 autoantibodies may be present at a low frequency in the sera of patients with some chronic diseases as well as in the sera of patients with autoimmune diseases. The diagnostic value of p53 autoantibodies is obvious in diseases, which are diagnosed generally at late stages of the disease by conventional methods. Furthermore, it is recommended to determine p53 autoantibodies in people of high risk to develop cancer that are heavy smokers, people occupationally exposed to carcinogens and people with a family history of cancer. A new generation of quantitative ELISAs now allows a follow up of patients during treatment and there is promising evidence that the reappearance of p53 autoantibodies are early marker for a relapse. There is recent evidence for auotantibodies against proteins that interact with p53 or against other members of the p53 protein family. The diagnostic and prognostic value of these autoantibodies remains to be elucidated