title: Circulating neuroendocrine markers in patients with prostate carcinoma.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Circulating neuroendocrine markers were measured in patients with prostate carcinoma (PC), prostatic intraepithelial neoplasia (PIN), and benign prostatic hypertrophy (BPH) with the goal to: 1) evaluate the differences in the expression of these markers in patients with benign, premalignant, and primary or metastatic PC; 2) evaluate their prognostic significance; 3) compare values in patients with hormone-naive and hormone-refractory disease; and 4) assess changes after androgen deprivation or chemotherapy.
  
  
  METHODS
  Serum neuron specific enolase (NSE) (immunoradiometric assay) and plasma chromogranin A (CgA) (enzyme-linked immunoadsorbent assay) were evaluated in 141 patients with BPH, 54 patients with PIN, and 159 patients with PC; 119 patients were bearing hormone-naive disease and 40 were bearing hormone-refractory disease. CgA was monitored in 31 patients submitted to androgen deprivation and in 24 patients receiving chemotherapy.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Supranormal CgA was observed more frequently in patients with American Urologic Association (AUA) Stage D2 disease (45.5%) compared with those with Stage D1 disease (33.3%), Stage C disease (16.7%), Stage A/B disease (18.8%), PIN (25.9%), and BPH (17.0%) (P < 0.02). Supranormal NSE did not change in any of the patient subgroups. Elevated CgA was observed in 36.0% of patients with metastases who had hormone-naive disease and in 45.0% of patients with hormone-refractory disease (P value not significant). Supranormal NSE and CgA values were predictors for poor prognosis in patients with hormone-refractory disease. Elevated baseline CgA values decreased > 50% in 1 of 12 patients who received luteinizing hormone-releasing hormone analogs and in 2 of 12 patients who underwent chemotherapy.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  CgA appears to reflect the neuroendocrine activity of PC better than NSE. Elevated CgA values correlate with poor prognosis and are scarcely influenced by either endocrine therapy or chemotherapy.
authors.affiliation: Dipartimento di Scienze Cliniche e Biologiche Università di Torino, Oncologia Medica, Medicina Interna, Azienda Ospedaliera San Luigi, Orbassano, Italy.
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Berruti
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Dogliotti
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Mosca
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Bellina
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Mari
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Torta
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Tarabuzzi
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Bollito
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Fontana
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Angeli
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor / Q000097:blood*; D002277:Carcinoma / Q000097:blood* / Q000401:mortality; D053379:Chromogranin A; D002864:Chromogranins / Q000097:blood*; D015331:Cohort Studies; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010751:Phosphopyruvate Hydratase / Q000097:blood*; D011470:Prostatic Hyperplasia / Q000097:blood* / Q000401:mortality; D019048:Prostatic Intraepithelial Neoplasia / Q000097:blood* / Q000401:mortality; D011471:Prostatic Neoplasms / Q000097:blood* / Q000401:mortality; D018709:Statistics, Nonparametric; D015996:Survival Rate
chemical_list: D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor; D053379:Chromogranin A; D002864:Chromogranins; D010751:Phosphopyruvate Hydratase