title: A New Diagnostic and Prognostic Marker in Endometrial Cancer: Neopterin.
abstract: In this study, we investigated the correlation between serum and urinary neopterin levels as well as the stage of the disease in women with endometrial cancer.Increased neopterin concentrations are reported in patients with activation of macrophages by interferon-γ, which includes the following: viral infections, autoimmune disorders, allograft rejection, and various malignant tumors. In patients with several types of cancer, high-neopterin concentrations in body fluids like serum/plasma, urine, ascites, and cerebrospinal fluid indicate the course of the disease, and it is associated with poor prognosis. In the light of foregoing, we aimed to investigate the role of neopterin as a prognostic biomarker in endometrial cancer.
  
  
  
  Serum neopterin concentrations were determined by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay and urinary neopterin by high-performance liquid chromatography in 41 patients with endometrial cancer (group 2) and 41 healthy women (group 1).
  
  
  
  Increased urinary neopterin levels were observed in patients with endometrial cancer (P < 0.001), and the difference in the urinary neopterin levels between low and high stages of endometrial cancer was significant (P < 0.01; stage I-II vs stage III-IV, respectively). Serum neopterin levels did not show a significant difference in each group.
  
  
  
  This study suggests that urinary neopterin levels are relevant in evaluating the endometrial cancer stage and follow-up of the disease. As a result, using neopterin and cancer antigen 125 together would be useful in determining the prognosis of endometrial cancer and its posttreatment progression.
authors.affiliation: *Gynecologic Oncology, and †Public Health, Gazi University Medical Faculty Hospital; ‡Toxicology, Hacettepe University Pharmacology Faculty; and §Obstetrics and Gynecology, Zekai Tahir Burak Women's Health Research and Education Hospital, Ankara, Turkey.
authors.forename: Esra
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Isci Bostanci
authors.forename: Asiye
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Ugras Dikmen
authors.forename: Gozde
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Girgin
authors.forename: Tayfun
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Gungor
authors.forename: Terken
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Baydar
authors.forename: Ahmet
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Nuri Danisman
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor / Q000097:blood* / Q000652:urine*; D018394:CA-125 Antigen / Q000097:blood; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D016889:Endometrial Neoplasms / Q000097:blood* / Q000473:pathology / Q000652:urine*; D004797:Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008565:Membrane Proteins / Q000097:blood; D008875:Middle Aged; D009367:Neoplasm Staging; D019798:Neopterin / Q000097:blood* / Q000652:urine*
chemical_list: D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor; D018394:CA-125 Antigen; C451759:MUC16 protein, human; D008565:Membrane Proteins; D019798:Neopterin