immunological study of certain tumour markers in breast cancer

ABSTRACT

One of significant recent advances in cancer diagnosis is the discovery of several soluble tumor associated substances which can be assessed in patients serum. The serum level of carcinoembryonic [CEA] alpha-acid glycoprotein [AG], and complement 3 [C3] are changed following breast carcinoma and such change can be used as a screening test for cancer diagnosis and prognosis. The present study included 40 patients with breast disease. They were classified into 2 subgroups; one of them included 20 patients with cancer breast and the other 20 patients with benign tumor. The control group included 20 apparently healthy females of the same age group. CEA was determined in the serum of all cases by enzyme immuno-assay [ELISA]. Ag and C3 were determined by using radial immuno-diffusion technique. Serum CEA, AG and C3 determination in cancer breast showed a significant increase than that of benign lesions and controls. No significant difference was detected in the serum level of AG and C3 between the benign breast lesions and controls, however significant difference was detected in serum CEA level between benign lesions and controls. It is tempting to postulate that serum levels of CEA, AG and C3 may be used as biological markers for diagnosis of breast cancer