Adiponectin as a Potential Differential Marker to... : Pancreas (original) (raw)

Original Articles

Adiponectin as a Potential Differential Marker to Distinguish Pancreatic Cancer and Chronic Pancreatitis

Chang, Ming-Chu MD*; Chang, Yu-Ting MD, MS*; Su, Ta-Chen MD, PhD*†; Yang, Wei-Shiung MD, PhD*‡; Chen, Chi-Ling PhD§; Tien, Yu-Wen MD, PhD*∥; Liang, Po-Chin MD¶; Wei, Shu-Chen MD, PhD*; Wong, Jau-Min MD, PhD*

From the *Department of Internal Medicine, National Taiwan University Hospital, and †Institute of Occupational Medicine and Industrial Hygiene, College of Public Health, ‡Graduate Institute of Clinical Medicine, College of Medicine, §Institute of Epidemiology, College of Public Health, and Departments of ∥Surgery and ¶Radiology, National Taiwan University Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan.

Received for publication July 5, 2006; accepted February 13, 2007.

Reprints: Jau-Min Wong, MD, PhD, Department of Internal Medicine, National Taiwan University Hospital, 7 Chung Shan South Road, Taipei, Taiwan (e-mail: [email protected]).

Abstract

Serum adiponectin (ADP) levels are reported inversely related to the risk in breast, endometrial cancer, and gastric cancer. Serum ADP as a potential marker compared with CA-19-9 in pancreatic carcinoma (PC) and chronic pancreatitis (CP) was studied. Adiponectin and CA-19-9 levels were examined at the time of diagnosis in patients with CP and PC.

Methods:

Serum ADP and CA-19-9 levels were measured by immunoassays in 72 patients with PC and 39 with CP and 290 control subjects.

Results:

The median levels of ADP for PC were significantly higher than those for CP and control subjects (P = 0.0035). Increasing the upper reference value of ADP allowed for better discrimination between CP and PC. The introduction of 28 ng/mL as a cutoff for ADP significantly improved its specificity. At an elevated cutoff level for ADP (28 ng/mL), a better discrimination between PC and CP was obtained.

Conclusions:

Adiponectin might be useful in the differential diagnosis of PC and CP with elevated CA-19-9. This gives rise to the possibility that ADP has a potential role in differentiating CP and PC.