Clinical Significance of Serum Squamous Cell Carcinoma Antigen for Patients with Recurrent Esophageal Squamous Cell Carcinoma

• Published in: Annals of surgical oncology 2021-11, Vol.28 (12), p.7990-7996
• Main Authors: Kanie, Yasukazu, Okamura, Akihiko, Maruyama, Suguru, Sakamoto, Kei, Fujiwara, Daisuke, Kanamori, Jun, Imamura, Yu, Watanabe, Masayuki
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Antigens; Antigens, Neoplasm - blood; Biomarkers, Tumor - blood; Clinical significance; Esophageal cancer; Esophageal Neoplasms - surgery; Esophageal Squamous Cell Carcinoma - surgery; Esophagus; Humans; Medical prognosis; Medicine; Medicine & Public Health; Multivariate analysis; Neoplasm Recurrence, Local; Oncology; Patients; Prognosis; Retrospective Studies; Serpins - blood; Squamous cell carcinoma; Surgery; Surgical Oncology; Translational Research; Tumor markers
• ISSN: 1068-9265; 1534-4681
• DOI: 10.1245/s10434-021-09945-5

Background Squamous cell carcinoma antigen (SCC-Ag) is a widely used tumor marker of SCC. However, the clinical significance of serum SCC-Ag levels in recurrent esophageal SCC (ESCC) remains unclear. This study aimed to investigate the clinical relevance of serum SCC-Ag levels in patients with recurrent ESCC after surgery. Methods This study retrospectively analyzed 208 patients who experienced recurrence after curative resection for ESCC. Serum SCC-Ag levels at the time of recurrence were collected from the patients’ records. The patients were classified into tertiles based on the serum SCC-Ag values (low, middle, and high), and the clinical characteristics and outcomes were compared among the groups. Results Significant differences in sex ( p = 0.001), pathologic T ( p = 0.034), and N stages of primary cancer ( p = 0.015) were observed among the groups. Although the recurrence patterns did not differ significantly, a high SCC-Ag was significantly associated with multiple recurrences ( p = 0.019). The high-SCC-Ag group patients demonstrated a shorter time to recurrence than the other groups ( p = 0.044). The SCC-Ag levels were significantly associated with overall survival after recurrence ( p = 0.036). Multivariate analysis showed that serum SCC-Ag value at recurrence was an independent poor prognosticator ( p = 0.031). Conclusion Elevated serum SCC-Ag levels at recurrence were significantly associated with a reduced time to recurrence, multiple recurrences, and a poor prognosis after recurrence. An alternative to the current standard treatment is required to improve the outcome for patients with high serum SCC-Ag levels at recurrence.