Tumour markers for bronchial carcinomas

In bronchial carcinomas (BC) the selection of a tumour marker should always be based on the histomorphology of the tumour type. In cat-cell carcinomas, for instance, it is recommendable to determine the CEA and the neurone-specific enolase (NSE) and to measure the serum calcitonin which is one of a series of ectopic hormones frequently occurring in the presence of this tumour type. - CEA-determinations are also useful in cases of non-cat-cell BCs and are of importance in squamous cell carcinomas, too, where additional knowledge of the SCC serum level (squamous cell carcinoma antigen) is helpful as well. - Pathologicall increased serum levels in BC patients usually suggest an advanced tumour stage. So, none of the above markers is appropriate for the purposes of early diagnosis or screening. Their clinical value mainly lies in the follow-up and therapy monitoring of BC patients, because increasing values generally are associated with a progression of the malignancy whilst decreasing levels usually are indicative of a response to therapy. (orig.)