title: Very high concentration of D-dimers in portal blood in patients with pancreatic cancer.
abstract: Nowadays, increasing attention has been focused on relation between increased D-dimer levels and cancer among patients without detectable thrombosis. The aim of the study was to measure plasma D-dimer levels in portal and peripheral blood in pancreatic cancer patients with absence of venous thromboembolism.
  
  
  METHODS
  Fifteen consecutive patients hospitalized in the Department of General and Transplant Surgery of Medical University in Łódź, from January to March 2012 who underwent surgery due to a pancreatic cancer were enrolled. At laparotomy, portal and peripheral blood were sampled concurrently. D-dimer and fibrinogen levels were measured. Moreover, to investigate overall coagulation function prothrombin time (PT), prothrombin index (PI), international normalized ratio (INR), thrombin time (TT), activated partial thromboplastin time (APTT), TT and APTT index were evaluated.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Peripheral plasma D-dimmer levels above normal range were found in 10/15 patients (66,67%), whereas D-dimer above normal values were confirmed in all portal blood samples. Mean D-dimer values were higher in portal than in peripheral blood (3279.37 vs 824.64, by 297%, p=0,025). These discrepancies were accompanied by normal limits of portal and peripheral levels of fibrinogen and comparable coagulation function indexes.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Our preliminary study showed the close relation between activation of hemostasis, reflected by elevated D-dimers in portal blood and presence of pancreatic cancer. These data suggest that measurement of portal blood D-dimer levels may be a potentially useful technique for screening the pancreatic cancer.
authors: Adam
authors: A
authors: Durczyński
authors: Dariusz
authors: D
authors: Szymański
authors: Michał
authors: M
authors: Nowicki
authors: Piotr
authors: P
authors: Hogendorf
authors: Grażyna
authors: G
authors: Poznańska
authors: Janusz
authors: J
authors: Strzelczyk
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D015415:Biomarkers / Q000032:analysis*; D005260:Female; D005338:Fibrin Fibrinogen Degradation Products / Q000032:analysis*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010190:Pancreatic Neoplasms / Q000097:blood* / Q000601:surgery*; D010314:Partial Thromboplastin Time; D015849:Plasminogen Inactivators / Q000097:blood; D011044:Poland; D011517:Prothrombin Time; D016896:Treatment Outcome
chemical_list: D015415:Biomarkers; D005338:Fibrin Fibrinogen Degradation Products; D015849:Plasminogen Inactivators; C036309:fibrin fragment D