title: Value of pre-operative serum CA125 level for prediction of prognosis in patients with endometrial cancer.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  High pre-operative CA125 levels in women with endometrial cancer may be related to lymph node metastases and poor prognosis.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  To evaluate whether pre-operative cancer antigen 125 (CA125) levels are associated with lymph node metastases and prognosis in endometrial cancer.
  
  
  METHODS
  One hundred and twenty women with endometrial cancer were retrospectively reviewed for pre-operative CA125 levels. The results were then correlated with the clinicopathological outcome.
  
  
  RESULTS
  An elevated CA125 (>40 U/mL) was significantly correlated with higher stage, higher grade, increased depth of myometrial invasion, lymph node metastases and the presence of lympho-vascular space involvement in endometrial cancer. Five-year overall survival (OS) and recurrence-free survival (RFS) rates were significantly higher in women with endometrial cancer with CA125 ≤ 40 U/mL than those with CA125 > 40 U/mL (P < 0.001). When women were further stratified according to CA125 levels and lymph node status, OS and RFS were highest for those with CA125 ≤ 40 U/mL and without lymph node metastases, and lowest for those with lymph node metastases and CA125 > 40 U/mL (P < 0.001).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The testing of pre-operative CA125 levels may a useful prognostic tool in endometrial cancer management.
authors.affiliation: Gynecologic Cancer Center, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Cathay General Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan.
authors.forename: Yu-Li
authors.initials: YL
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.forename: Chia-Yen
authors.initials: CY
authors.lastname: Huang
authors.forename: Tsai-Yen
authors.initials: TY
authors.lastname: Chien
authors.forename: Shih-Hung
authors.initials: SH
authors.lastname: Huang
authors.forename: Ching-Jung
authors.initials: CJ
authors.lastname: Wu
authors.forename: Chih-Ming
authors.initials: CM
authors.lastname: Ho
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D018394:CA-125 Antigen / Q000097:blood*; D002277:Carcinoma / Q000097:blood* / Q000556:secondary* / Q000601:surgery; D018572:Disease-Free Survival; D016889:Endometrial Neoplasms / Q000097:blood* / Q000473:pathology* / Q000601:surgery; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007044:Hysterectomy; D053208:Kaplan-Meier Estimate; D008197:Lymph Node Excision; D008207:Lymphatic Metastasis; D008875:Middle Aged; D060787:Neoplasm Grading; D009361:Neoplasm Invasiveness; D009367:Neoplasm Staging; D011237:Predictive Value of Tests; D057234:Preoperative Period; D011379:Prognosis; D016016:Proportional Hazards Models; D012189:Retrospective Studies
chemical_list: D018394:CA-125 Antigen