Serum MAGE-4 protein in ovarian cancer patients.
OBJECTIVE
We measured serum levels of MAGE-4 protein in patients with ovarian cancer to investigate the relationship between serum MAGE-4 positivity and prognosis.


METHODS
Serum levels of MAGE-4 protein were measured with an ELISA system.


RESULTS
Serum levels of MAGE-4 in patients with ovarian cancer were significantly higher than levels in patients with benign diseases. Serum MAGE-4 protein was considered positive in 22% of primary ovarian cancer patients. The positive rate was the highest in sera of patients with surface epithelial-stromal tumors, particularly serous adenocarcinomas (24%). The survival time after a primary surgical operation in ovarian cancer patients with serum MAGE-4 positivity was significantly shorter than that of MAGE-4-negative cases.


CONCLUSIONS
These results suggest that serum MAGE-4 protein is a potential prognostic factor of reduced survival in ovarian cancer patients.
Kawagoe
H
H
Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Kurume University School of Medicine, Kurume, 830, Japan.
Yamada
A
A
Matsumoto
H
H
Ito
M
M
Ushijima
K
K
Nishida
T
T
Yakushiji
M
M
Itoh
K
K
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000951:Antigens, Neoplasm; D004797:Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008875:Middle Aged; D009363:Neoplasm Proteins / Q000097:blood*; D010051:Ovarian Neoplasms / Q000097:blood* / Q000401:mortality / Q000473:pathology; D011379:Prognosis; D016019:Survival Analysis
D000951:Antigens, Neoplasm; C095204:MAGEA4 protein, human; D009363:Neoplasm Proteins