Evaluation of ovarian cancer biomarkers in subjects with benign asbestos-related pleural diseases

Our plain-English summary of Evaluation of ovarian cancer biomarkers in subjects with benign asbestos-related pleural diseases, by E.K. Park, A.R. Johnson, D.H. Yates, et al (Clinical Chemistry and Laboratory Medicine, 2011).

The study

• Authors: E.K. Park, A.R. Johnson, D.H. Yates, P.S. Thomas
• Journal: Clinical Chemistry and Laboratory Medicine
• Published: 2011;49(1):147-50
• Cited by: 4 articles, as counted by NIH iCite
• Read it: PubMed · Publisher

Abstract

Background: Mesothelioma and ovarian cancer have been reported to have a similar pathogenesis, and for this reason it was hypothesized that there may be biomarkers in common and possibly associated with benign pleural diseases caused by asbestos exposure.

Methods: Serum biomarkers including insulin-like growth factor-II (IGF-II), leptin, prolactin and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) were measured in an observational study of subjects with benign asbestos-related pleural diseases (BARPD) (n=24) and healthy subjects with an asbestos exposure history (n=12).

Results: Mean serum IGF-II and VEGF concentration in healthy subjects with a history of asbestos exposure were higher than those with BARPD. Mean serum concentrations of leptin and prolactin showed opposite trends when compared to IGF-II and VEGF concentrations among these groups.

Conclusions: The results suggest that IGF-II and VEGF concentrations are lower in BARPD, similar to studies of ovarian cancer. This finding warrants further investigation with malignant asbestos-related diseases.

In plain English

This small observational study measured four blood proteins that have been studied as possible markers of ovarian cancer (IGF-II, leptin, prolactin and VEGF) in 36 men with a history of asbestos exposure. Twenty-four had benign asbestos-related pleural diseases (12 with diffuse pleural thickening and 12 with pleural plaques alone), and 12 were apparently healthy. The healthy exposed men had a higher average IGF-II level than the men with pleural disease (760.5 versus 616.9 ng/mL), and this difference was statistically significant (p=0.0486). Average VEGF was also higher in the healthy group (405.2 versus 291.4 pg/mL), but this difference was not statistically significant. Leptin and prolactin did not differ significantly between the groups. The authors concluded that IGF-II and VEGF levels appear lower in benign asbestos-related pleural disease, as in studies of ovarian cancer, and that this should be investigated in malignant asbestos-related diseases. They called the work preliminary. They noted its small size and that it included no one with mesothelioma, ovarian cancer or the full range of asbestos-related diseases.

We wrote this plain-English summary from the full article with the help of AI, and a second AI model checked each sentence against the article. It is not the authors' wording; the abstract and the article are their own account.

What the study did and found

• Design: Observational study comparing blood (serum) levels of four proteins between two groups of asbestos-exposed men; described by the authors as a preliminary study
• Who was studied: 36 men recruited through the Workers' Compensation (Dust Diseases) Board of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia. Twenty-four had benign asbestos-related pleural diseases: 12 with diffuse pleural thickening and 12 with pleural plaques alone. Twelve were asbestos-exposed but apparently healthy. Mean age was 70.2 years. Study dates are not given.
• Exposure: A history of asbestos exposure. The article does not report fiber types, jobs or amounts of exposure. The measured outcomes were serum IGF-II, leptin, prolactin and VEGF.
• Main results:
  • Mean serum VEGF was 405.2 (SD 215.2) pg/mL in the healthy asbestos-exposed men and 291.4 (SD 211.5) pg/mL in the men with benign pleural disease. The difference was not statistically significant (p=0.1395).
  • Mean serum leptin was 77.1 (SD 90.1) pg/mL in the men with benign pleural disease and 87.6 (SD 154.3) pg/mL in the healthy asbestos-exposed men. The difference was not statistically significant (p=0.7985).
  • Mean serum prolactin was 4.8 (SD 3.1) ng/mL in the healthy asbestos-exposed men and 6.9 (SD 6.8) ng/mL in the men with benign pleural disease (p=0.3804). Prolactin and IGF-II were not measured for two healthy men, one man with diffuse pleural thickening and one with pleural plaques, because there was not enough serum. One healthy man's prolactin result of 284.1 ng/mL was left out as an extreme outlier.
  • Mean serum IGF-II was 760.5 (SD 179.9) ng/mL in the healthy asbestos-exposed men and 616.9 (SD 184.6) ng/mL in the men with benign pleural disease (p=0.0486). This was the only one of the four markers that differed significantly between the groups.
• The authors' conclusion: The authors concluded that IGF-II and VEGF concentrations are lower in benign asbestos-related pleural diseases, similar to studies in ovarian cancer patients. They said this warrants further investigation in malignant asbestos-related diseases.
• Limitations the authors state:
  • Small sample size
  • The study did not include people with mesothelioma or ovarian cancer, or the full spectrum of asbestos-related diseases

Topics

The National Library of Medicine indexes this study under subjects our site covers: Ovarian cancer, Pleural plaques and thickening.

Medical terms in this study, explained in our Lexicon: Ovarian Cancer, Biomarker, Asbestos-Related Pleural Disease, Mesothelioma, Asbestos Exposure.

Related studies

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• PAX8 Expression in a Subset of Malignant Peritoneal Mesotheliomas and Benign Mesothelium has Diagnostic Implications in the Differential Diagnosis of Ovarian Serous Carcinoma — D.B. Chapel, A.N. Husain, et al. (2017)
• Benign cystic peritoneal mesothelioma incorrectly diagnosed as an ovarian borderline mucinous tumor of intestinal type at transvaginal preoperative ultrasound evaluation — A.C. Testa, G.F. Zannoni, et al. (2011)
• The diagnostic and molecular characteristics of malignant mesothelioma and ovarian/peritoneal serous carcinoma — B. Davidson (2011)
• Biomarkers for early detection of mesothelioma in asbestos-exposed subjects — E.K. Park, P.S. Thomas, et al. (2010)
• Evaluation of New Biomarkers in the Prediction of Malignant Mesothelioma in Subjects with Environmental Asbestos Exposure — M. Demir, H. Kaya, et al. (2016)

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