False tumor marker surge evoked by peripheral blood stem cell transplantation.
Peripheral blood stem cell transplantation (PBSCT) allows multiple intensive chemotherapy treatments and hematopoietic progenitor cell rescues for poor-risk patients with a variety of malignancies. We report false surges of a tumor marker, serum human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG), evoked by PBSCT in the course of chemotherapy for a poor-risk testicular cancer patient. We confirmed that this phenomenon resulted from reinfusion of peripheral blood stem cells (PBSCs) containing hCG at a high concentration, collected when the patient's serum hCG levels were remarkably elevated. This is the first report to demonstrate false tumor marker surges caused by PBSCT. Because a rapid rise in tumor markers may demand an immediate change in the therapeutic strategy, physicians should be aware of the possibility of this phenomenon when treating poor-risk cancer patients whose tumor markers are remarkably elevated at the time of PBSC harvest.
Inoue
Masaharu
M
Department of Urology, Tokyo Medical and Dental University Graduate School, Tokyo 113-8519, Japan.
Koga
Fumitaka
F
Kawakami
Satoru
S
Numao
Noboru
N
Sakura
Mizuaki
M
Kobayashi
Tsuyoshi
T
Kihara
Kazunori
K
D000328:Adult; D000970:Antineoplastic Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor; D017024:Chemotherapy, Adjuvant; D006063:Chorionic Gonadotropin / Q000097:blood*; D002945:Cisplatin / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D003131:Combined Modality Therapy; D005189:False Positive Reactions; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009373:Neoplasms, Germ Cell and Embryonal / Q000628:therapy; D036102:Peripheral Blood Stem Cell Transplantation; D011379:Prognosis; D013736:Testicular Neoplasms / Q000097:blood* / Q000473:pathology / Q000628:therapy*
D000970:Antineoplastic Agents; D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor; D006063:Chorionic Gonadotropin; D002945:Cisplatin