Journal Article DKFZ-2026-01821

http://join2-wiki.gsi.de/foswiki/pub/Main/Artwork/join2_logo100x88.png
Early kinetics of CA19-9 and CEA after 5-FU-based chemotherapy for gastrointestinal cancers.

 ;  ;  ;  ;  ;  ;  ;

2026
Springer [New York]

Discover oncology 17(1), 1027 () [10.1007/s12672-026-05570-4]
 GO

Abstract: In gastrointestinal oncology, serum tumor markers such as CEA and CA19-9 are typically monitored over several weeks to assess therapeutic efficacy. The immediate impact of cytotoxic therapy on these serum tumor markers, however, remains poorly characterized.We analyzed a single-center cohort of patients with advanced gastrointestinal cancers (pancreatic, biliary, colorectal, and esophageal) treated with 5-fluorouracil-based regimens. Paired serum samples were collected immediately before the start of chemotherapy (0 h) and at the removal of the 48-h 5-FU continuous pump (48 h). The primary endpoint was the percentage change of tumor markers during this time window (∆CEA and ∆CA19-9). Secondary endpoints included the association of these acute kinetics with subsequent radiographic response.78 cycles of 5-FU-based chemotherapy were included (33 patients, median cycles per patient: 2). CA19-9 increased significantly after chemotherapy (median ∆CA19-9 + 4.8% per patient, Wilcoxon p = 0.015; mixed model p = 0.062; cycle-level range - 11% to + 92%), as did LDH (median ∆LDH + 12.8% per patient, both Wilcoxon and mixed model p < 0.001; cycle-level range - 39% to + 72%). CEA levels remained stable (median ∆CEA - 3.6% per patient, Wilcoxon p = 0.09; mixed model p = 0.05; cycle-level range - 20% to + 22%). There was no statistically significant association between early changes in serum tumor markers and radiographic outcome.In this hypothesis-generating study, 5-FU-based therapy leads to a statistically significant increase in CA19-9 and LDH levels, but not in CEA, after 48 h. The magnitude of the increase did not predict radiographic response.

Keyword(s): Biliary tract cancer ; CA19-9 ; CEA ; Colorectal cancer ; Esophageal cancer ; Pancreatic cancer ; Serum tumor markers

Classification:

Note: #DKTKZFB9#

Contributing Institute(s):
  1. DKTK Koordinierungsstelle München (MU01)
Research Program(s):
  1. 899 - ohne Topic (POF4-899) (POF4-899)

Appears in the scientific report 2026
Database coverage:
Medline ; DOAJ ; Article Processing Charges ; BIOSIS Previews ; Biological Abstracts ; Clarivate Analytics Master Journal List ; DOAJ Seal ; Essential Science Indicators ; Fees ; IF < 5 ; JCR ; PubMed Central ; SCOPUS ; Science Citation Index Expanded ; Web of Science Core Collection
Click to display QR Code for this record

The record appears in these collections:
Document types > Articles > Journal Article
Public records
Publications database

 Record created 2026-07-22, last modified 2026-07-23


Rate this document:

Rate this document:
1
2
3
 
(Not yet reviewed)