[Initial experiences with the determination of neopterin in the urine of females with genital and breast tumors].

Abstract

The quantitative analysis of urinary neopterin was carried out ahead of the operation by means of high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). The sample included 98 women with genital or breast neoplasias. Significant differences have been found between the patients with benign or preinvasive neoplasias as well as women with malignancies (p less than 0.001) as compared to a control group of healthy females. The neopterin levels of the malignant tumors were definitely higher than those of the benign tumors (p less than 0.01). As far as genital tract cancer ist concerned, the neopterin levels found were in 51.5 per cent of the cases above the estimated limit with a specificity of 95.1 per cent in healthy patients and 79.5 per cent within the group of nonmalignant gynecologic lesions. The neopterin levels established in patients with genital tract malignancies appear to be related with the stage of the development of the disease (i.e. levels and positive rate are significantly higher in stages III and IV as compared to stages I and II; p less than 0.01). Tests of women with breast cancer showed the smallest number of raised neopterin levels. The average level of the last mentioned cases didn't differ greatly from the levels of the benign breast tumors. Tests of the patients with cancer after treatment showed in 68.8 per cent of all cases neopterin levels corresponding to the clinical findings. However, cases of smaller recurrent tumors may be accompanied by normal neopterin levels as well.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)