title: Are circulating CEA immune complexes a prognostic marker in patients with carcinoma of the gastrointestinal tract?
abstract: CEA immune complexes and free CEA were determined to 363 patients with histologically confirmed adenocarcinoma of the gastrointestinal tract before surgery and in a post-operative follow-up. Circulating CEA immune complexes (CEA-IC) could be detected preoperatively in 89 patients. Incidence of CEA-IC increased with increasing tumour extension; 72/89 patients with CEA-IC showed already metastatic disease progression, 40/89 had nonresectable tumours. Patients with preoperative CEA-IC had a poorer prognosis than patients without CEA-IC but with high levels of free CEA, or CEA-negative patients. The appearance of CEA-IC with consecutive increases in the postoperative follow-up indicated disease recurrence. In 32/55 relapse cases, circulating CEA-IC were detected postoperatively, all 32 cases developing metastatic spread of disease.
mesh_terms: D000230:Adenocarcinoma / Q000276:immunology* / Q000601:surgery; D000368:Aged; D000936:Antigen-Antibody Complex / Q000032:analysis* / Q000276:immunology; D002272:Carcinoembryonic Antigen / Q000032:analysis / Q000276:immunology*; D005770:Gastrointestinal Neoplasms / Q000276:immunology* / Q000601:surgery; D006801:Humans; D008875:Middle Aged; D009364:Neoplasm Recurrence, Local; D011184:Postoperative Period; D011379:Prognosis; D013997:Time Factors
chemical_list: D000936:Antigen-Antibody Complex; D002272:Carcinoembryonic Antigen