Does CA 125 Predict Peritoneal Dissemination in Patients with Gastric Cancer?

Peritoneal dissemination is one of the most common forms of metastasis with a poor prognosis in patients with gastric cancer. This study aimed to investigate the clinical use of carbohydrate antigen 125 (CA 125) in patients with gastric cancer. A total of 182 patients who underwent gastric cancer surgery were included in the study. The patient's age, sex, presence of metastasis and peritoneal dissemination, the degree of tumor differentiation, and preoperative serum tumor marker levels were examined. A total of 34 patients were diagnosed as having peritoneal dissemination. The patients were examined according to peritoneal dissemination and CA 125 (p < 0.001) levels were significantly increased compared with patients without peritoneal dissemination. Increased tumor invasion depth was associated with significantly increased median levels of CA 125 (p < 0.001). Similarly, increased lymph node invasion was associated with significantly increased median levels of CA 125 (p < 0.001). In patients with metastases, only median levels of CA 125 were significantly increased (p = 0.025). Serum CA 125 levels are useful for predicting peritoneal dissemination in patients with gastric cancer.