Relationship between serum levels of some acute-phase proteins and stage of disease and performance status in patients with lung cancer

Background:Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer death in both developed and developing countries. The aim of the present study was to compare serum levels of α1-acid glycoprotein, ceruloplasmin, transferrin, ferritin, and albumin with tumor stage, distant metastasis, lymphadenopathy, and patient performance status in patients with non-small-cell lung cancer and those with small-cell lung cancer.
Material/Methods:The study was carried out in 46 patients with primary lung cancer (39 men and 7 women) and 34 healthy subjects as the control group.
Results:Serum ceruloplasmin and ferritin levels were higher and transferrin and albumin levels were lower both in non-small-cell and small-cell lung cancer patients than in controls. The levels of α1-acid glycoprotein and ferritin associated with both performance status and lymph node metastasis.
Conclusions:Measurement of α1-acid glycoprotein and ferritin levels could be a useful prognostic factor in addition to performance status in patient with primary lung cancer.

Keywords: Adult, Acute-Phase Proteins - analysis, Ceruloplasmin - analysis, Ferritins - blood, Lung Neoplasms - complications, Lymphatic Diseases - etiology, Neoplasm Metastasis, Orosomucoid - analysis, Serum Albumin - analysis, Statistics, Nonparametric, Transferrin - analysis