Background: The roles of carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) and carbohydrate antigen 19-9 (CA 19-9) in periampullary cancers have not been clearly established. Diagnostic and prognostic values of these two tumor markers were clarified in this study.
Study design: Preoperative serum levels of CEA and CA 19-9, and clinicopathologic features were retrospectively reviewed in 143 surgical patients with periampullary cancer from 1989 to 1997.
Results: There were 86 resectable and 57 unresectable periampullary cancers. CA 19-9 demonstrated significantly higher sensitivity in detecting these cancers than CEA. The cancer with unresectable lesion, total bilirubin >7.3 mg/dL, or tumor size >2 cm tended to associate with higher CA 19-9 level. CEA level was significantly higher in the tumor >2 cm, not in the tumor < or =2 cm. CA 19-9 was a significant prognostic factor in both resectable and unresectable periampullary cancers, but CEA was significant only in the resectable group. Multivariate analysis revealed that independent prognostic factors included CA 19-9, resectability, primary tumor, and stage, and CA 19-9 was the most important one.
Conclusion: CA 19-9 provided more important diagnostic and prognostic values than CEA in periampullary cancers and was the most important independent prognostic factor for periampullary cancers. This study recommends serum CA 19-9 as an adjunct in detecting periampullary cancers, in evaluating resectability, and in predicting prognosis.