Abstract
Author(s): BARTÅOMIEJ BARCZYÅSKI, KAROLINA FRÄSZCZAK, GRZEGORZ POLAK, JAN KOTARSKI
There is a strong need to improve early diagnosis of ovarian cancer. Nowadays the most important tools used in early ovarian cancer detection are imaging techniques and serum biomarkers, with CA125 being the most commonly used and thoroughly studied. Unfortunately, the application of CA125 as a single screening tool in ovarian cancer is limited due to lack of sensitivity and specificity. Mesothelin is one of the biomarkers with high specificity to ovarian cancer, which may complement or replace CA125 as a marker for ovarian tumor diagnosis. The results of the studies prove its high sensitivity and specificity, especially in complex multi-marker models. The soluble isoforms of mesothelin can be identified not only in serum but also in urine of cancer patients, and assays measuring tumor markers in urine have the strong advantage of being non-invasive Mesothelin elicits humoral immune response in host and auto-antibodies specific for the antigen are detected in sera of patients with some mesothelin-positive tumors including ovarian cancer. The antibodies to mesothelin can have an impact on development and progression of ovarian cancer and the concentration of such antibodies aids the diagnosis and monitoring of patients during complex oncologic treatment. Assays measuring novel biomarkers in serum and urine of are likely to be clinically useful for women with ovarian cancer, as data indicate that they reliably complement standard diagnostic tools based on ultrasonography and serum tests and algorithms (CA125, OVA1, ROMA).