Pancreatic oncofetal antigen (POA) is considered to be an oncofetal
antigen for human pancreas, and its measurement seems to be useful in the diagnosis of
pancreatic cancer. In this study, POA, CEA,
ferritin, BMG (
beta 2 microglobulin) and AFP either in sera in pancreatic juice were measured in patients with
pancreatic cancer,
chronic pancreatitis and other various diseases, and their diagnostic value was comparatively evaluated. POA showed the highest sensitivity for
pancreatic cancer compared with CEA or others. POA and CEA in pancreatic juice showed higher sensitivity and specificity than those in serum, probably reflecting the earlier malignant status. Localization of POA was immunohistochemically observed in tissues of
pancreatic cancer and fetal pancreas. In some cases of
pancreatic cancer with elevated serum CEA,
ferritin and BMG, only CEA was positive in
cancer cells, indicating that CEA is produced from
cancer cells while
ferritin and BMG are not produced from them. The combined assay of POA and CEA improved sensitivity for the diagnosis of
pancreatic cancer. It is concluded that POA could be a useful
tumor marker providing valuable information in the clinical diagnostic system of
pancreatic cancer.