hCG and hCG subunits as tumour markers in patients with endocrine pancreatic tumours and carcinoids

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Abstract
Serum levels of hCG [human chorionic gonadotropin], hCG-.alpha.- and hCG-.beta.-subunits were measured in 29 patients with APUD[amine precursor uptake and decarboxylation]-tumors, 16 patients with endocrine pancreatic tumors (EPT) and 13 patients with carcinoids. Of 29 patients, 20 (69%) had elevated level of hCG and its subunits. Among patients with EPT, 11 of 16 (69%) had raised levels of these peptides. Three patients with benign tumors had normal concentrations, thus giving a frequency of 85% in the group of malignant EPT. In patients with carcinoids 9 of 13 (69%) had elevated serum levels of at least 1 of the components. A discordance in secretion pattern between the 2 types of APUD-tumors was noticed. Only 1 patient, a case with a carcinoid had raised levels of the complete hCG molecule. The levels of hCG-.alpha. were elevated in 23% of the patients with malignant EPT and 69% of the patients with carcinoids while the corresponding frequencies of raised hCG-.beta. levels were 69% and 8%, respectively. Three of 4 patients with so-called nonfunctioning islet cell tumors had raised levels of the subunits. hCG subunits evidently are valuable tumor markers in both of these APUD-tumors, and malignant EPT predominantly secrete hCG-.beta.- and carcinoids hCG-.alpha.-subunits.