Serum calcitonin gene-related peptide levels in untreated prostate cancer patients.
BACKGROUND
The role of calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP) in prostate cancer has not been fully understood. Moreover, the serum CGRP level in prostate cancer patients has never been reported. We measured the serum CGRP levels in untreated prostate cancer patients to elucidate its clinical significance.


METHODS
We used 36 serum samples from prostate cancer patients. All patients had never received any treatment. Serum CGRP was measured by immunoradiometric assay, and we analysed the association between serum CGRP level and clinicopathological factors.


RESULTS
Serum CGRP levels in the patients with higher clinical stages and histological grade were significantly higher than in those with lower stages and grade, respectively. But the levels did not correlate with the patient's age, liver or renal functions, serum prostate-specific antigen levels.


CONCLUSIONS
Serum CGRP levels were significantly elevated in the patients with high grade or high stage untreated prostate cancer patients. Measurement of the serum CGRP may be a useful predictor of staging or grading of prostate cancer in the untreated prostate cancer patients.
Suzuki
Kazumi
K
Department of Urology, Jichi Medical School, Tochigi, Japan. s.kazu@jichi.ac.jp
Kobayashi
Yutaka
Y
Morita
Tatsuo
T
D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor / Q000097:blood*; D015740:Calcitonin Gene-Related Peptide / Q000097:blood*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009367:Neoplasm Staging / Q000379:methods; D017430:Prostate-Specific Antigen; D011471:Prostatic Neoplasms / Q000097:blood* / Q000473:pathology; D012189:Retrospective Studies
D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor; D017430:Prostate-Specific Antigen; D015740:Calcitonin Gene-Related Peptide