TOTAL AND LIPID-BOUND SIALIC-ACID AS MARKERS IN PATIENTS WITH CERVICAL-CANCER TREATED WITH RADIOTHERAPY

In a prospective study, serum concentrations of total sialic acid (TSA) and lipid-bound sialic acid (LSA) were serially determined during follow-up in patients with cervical carcinoma, treated with radiotheraphy. Patients with stage II B disease showed an increase in both markers one month after the initiation of treatment and then a decrease in the following months, concurrently with a successful treatment outcome. Most patients with stage III B disease exhibited likewise a similar pattern of change in the serum values of the two markers, but differences were observed according to marker levels, for a subsequent raise of TSA value was associated with the appearance of distant metastasis while declining marker values may coexist in patients with regression, progression or stabilization of the tumor.