title: Detection of integrin-linked kinase in the serum of patients with malignant pleural mesothelioma.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Integrin-linked kinase, which is relevant to neoplastic transformation, is highly expressed in malignant pleural mesothelioma. Recently, detection of integrin-linked kinase in serum of patients with ovarian cancer has been reported. This study asks whether integrin-linked kinase can also be detected in serum of patients with malignant pleural mesothelioma and whether serum level has diagnostic or prognostic relevance for that disease.
  
  
  METHODS
  A sandwich enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay was designed to detect integrin-linked kinase and applied to serum samples from 46 patients with malignant pleural mesothelioma, 98 patients with other malignant chest disease, and 23 patients with benign chest disease. Integrin-linked kinase serum concentration and clinical data were correlated statistically.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Median serum integrin-linked kinase concentration was significantly higher in malignant pleural mesothelioma (8.89 ng/mL) than in other malignant chest disease (0.66 ng/mL) or benign chest disease (0.78 ng/mL, P < .001). There was no relevant correlation of serum integrin-linked kinase with cell lysis parameters (R(2) < 0.1). Serum integrin-linked kinase concentration greater than 2.48 ng/mL had diagnostic sensitivity of 80%, specificity of 95%, positive predictive value of 85.7%, negative predictive value of 92.7%, and overall accuracy of 91% for distinction between malignant pleural mesothelioma and other diseases. Serum integrin-linked kinase concentration in malignant pleural mesothelioma was independent of histologic subtype or asbestos exposure. There was no statistically significant impact of serum integrin-linked kinase concentration on prognosis.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Integrin-linked kinase can be detected in serum of patients with malignant pleural mesothelioma and may be a diagnostic marker for the disease.
authors.affiliation: Division of Thoracic Surgery, Karl Landsteiner Institute for Thoracic Oncology, Otto Wagner Hospital, Vienna, Austria. s.watzka@utanet.at
authors.forename: Stefan B
authors.initials: SB
authors.lastname: Watzka
authors.forename: Florian
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Posch
authors.forename: Harvey I
authors.initials: HI
authors.lastname: Pass
authors.forename: Margaret
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Huflejt
authors.forename: David
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Bernhard
authors.forename: Gregory E
authors.initials: GE
authors.lastname: Hannigan
authors.forename: Michael R
authors.initials: MR
authors.lastname: Müller
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D015415:Biomarkers / Q000097:blood; D002471:Cell Transformation, Neoplastic; D004797:Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008654:Mesothelioma / Q000097:blood* / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000201:enzymology; D008875:Middle Aged; D010997:Pleural Neoplasms / Q000097:blood* / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000201:enzymology; D011379:Prognosis; D017346:Protein Serine-Threonine Kinases / Q000097:blood*; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D000099200:Scaffold Protein ILK
chemical_list: D015415:Biomarkers; D017346:Protein Serine-Threonine Kinases; D000099200:Scaffold Protein ILK