Squamous Cell Carcinoma Antigen as Tumor Marker for Head and Neck Malignancy
Serum concentrations of squamous cell carcinoma antigen (SCC), extracted from liver metastasis of uterine cervical squamous cell carcinoma and purified, were measured by radioimmunoassay in 85 patients with head and neck diseases (40 benign diseases, 37 squamous cell carcinoma and 8 malignancy of other histological types). Twenty-nine of 37 (78%) patients with head and neck squamous cell carcinoma showed high circulating SCC levels, while the positivity rates of SCC in patients with benign diseases or malignancy of other histological types were 2.5% (1/40) and 38% (3/8), respectively. Although this SCC assay was limited in the early diagnosis, it could provide a useful information for monitoring the response to treatment and for evaluating the prediction of the recurrence.
