Protein expression levels of carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) in Danish ovarian cancer patients: from the Danish 'MALOVA'ovarian cancer study.
OBJECTIVE
To determine the variation in expression of carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) in 760 epithelial ovarian tumours from Denmark, and to correlate expression with clinicopathological parameters and prognosis for the disease.


METHODS
Using tissue arrays (TA), we analysed CEA expression in tissues from 189 women diagnosed with low malignant potential ovarian tumours (LMP, borderline ovarian tumours) and 571 women diagnosed with ovarian cancer (OC).


RESULTS
Using 30% as the cut-off level for CEA over-expression, 18% of LMPs and 4% of OCs were positive. A higher proportion of mucinous tumours were positive compared with other histological subtypes (p<0.00001). A univariate survival analysis suggested a shorter disease specific survival for patients with 30% or higher CEA expression in the tumour tissue (p = 0.004). In a Cox survival analysis, which included 569 OC cases subgrouped by stage (I to IV), the highest CEA expression compared with no expression was found to be a prognostic factor (level 3 versus negative: HR = 2.12, 95%CI 1.11-4.05). FIGO stage, residual tumour after primary surgery, age at diagnosis, other histological types versus serous adenocarcinoma and low versus high histological grade tumours were also prognostic factors.


CONCLUSIONS
These data suggest that CEA expression is an independent prognostic factor for mucinous OC in Danish patients.
Høgdall
Estrid V S
EV
Department of Virus, Hormones and Cancer, Institute of Cancer Epidemiology, Danish Cancer Society, Copenhagen, Denmark. Hogdall@dadlnet.dk
Christensen
Lise
L
Kjaer
Susanne K
SK
Blaakaer
Jan
J
Jarle Christensen
Ib
I
Gayther
Simon
S
Jacobs
Ian J
IJ
Høgdall
Claus K
CK
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor / Q000032:analysis*; D002272:Carcinoembryonic Antigen / Q000096:biosynthesis*; D002986:Clinical Trials as Topic; D003718:Denmark; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D053208:Kaplan-Meier Estimate; D008875:Middle Aged; D010051:Ovarian Neoplasms / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000401:mortality* / Q000473:pathology; D011379:Prognosis; D046888:Tissue Array Analysis
D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor; D002272:Carcinoembryonic Antigen