title: The prognostic significance of CA 125 in patients with non-Hodgkin's lymphoma.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To assess the association of serum CA 125 in patients with non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (NHL) with prognostic parameters of the disease, response to treatment, and survival.
  
  
  METHODS
  Sixty-eight patients [38 males, median age 56 (range 17-82) yr] with NHL were evaluated. CA 125 was measured by an enzyme immunoradiometric assay at diagnosis and at the end of first-line treatment.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Median overall CA 125 was 49 (1-963) U mL-1, whereas 49 patients had initially abnormal (>35 U mL) CA 125 levels. High CA 125 was found to correlate with failure of treatment (P = 0.001) and relapse (P = 0.01), and to be independently associated with bulky disease, effusions, LDH, and the International Prognostic Index (IPI) score (P<0.01 for each of these four variables). An initially abnormal CA 125 value was associated with poorer 5-yr survival [median survival of patients with CA 125>35 U mL-1 33 (18-72) months compared to 58 (20-77) months for those with CA 125 = 35 U mL-1, P = 0.012]. Moreover, CA 125>35 U mL-1 (among stage III/IV and LDH>460 mU mL-1) emerged as an independent predictor of death within 5 yr from diagnosis (Relative Risk (RR) 3.1, 95% CI 1.5-12.8, P = 0.02).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Measurement of serum CA 125 is useful for staging, monitoring, and estimating prognosis in patients with NHL.
authors.affiliation: Haematology-Oncology Unit, Third University Department of Medicine, Sotiria Hospital, 152 Mesogion Avenue, Athens 11527, Greece.
authors.forename: Ioannis D
authors.initials: ID
authors.lastname: Zacharos
authors.forename: Stamatis P
authors.initials: SP
authors.lastname: Efstathiou
authors.forename: Elisa
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Petreli
authors.forename: George
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Georgiou
authors.forename: Dimitrios I
authors.initials: DI
authors.lastname: Tsioulos
authors.forename: Stylianos E
authors.initials: SE
authors.lastname: Mastorantonakis
authors.forename: Ioulia
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Christakopoulou
authors.forename: Paraskevi P
authors.initials: PP
authors.lastname: Roussou
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor; D018394:CA-125 Antigen / Q000097:blood*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008228:Lymphoma, Non-Hodgkin / Q000097:blood* / Q000401:mortality / Q000503:physiopathology; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011379:Prognosis; D016019:Survival Analysis
chemical_list: D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor; D018394:CA-125 Antigen