Original Article
Value of combining serum carcinoembryonic antigen and PET/CT in predicting EGFR mutation in non-small cell lung cancer
Abstract
Background: We sought to investigate the associations between pretreatment serum Carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) level, 18F-Fluoro-2-deoxyglucose (18F-FDG) uptake value of primary tumor and epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) mutation status in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC).
Methods: We retrospectively reviewed medical records of 210 NSCLC patients who underwent EGFR mutation test and 18F-FDG positron emission tomography/computed tomography (PET/CT) scan before antitumor therapy. The associations between EGFR mutations and patients’ characteristics, serum CEA, PET/ CT imaging characteristics maximal standard uptake value (SUVmax) of the primary tumor were analyzed. Receiver-operating characteristic (ROC) curve was used to assess the predictive value of these factors.
Results: EGFR mutations were found in 70 patients (33.3%). EGFR mutations were more common in high CEA group (CEA ≥7.0 ng/mL) than in low CEA group (CEA <7.0 ng/mL) (40.4% vs. 27.6%; P=0.05). Females (P<0.001), non-smokers (P<0.001), patients with adenocarcinoma (P<0.001) and SUVmax <9.0 (P=0.001) were more likely to be EGFR mutation-positive. Multivariate analysis revealed that gender, tumor histology, pretreatment serum CEA level, and SUVmax were the most significant predictors for EGFR mutations. The ROC curve revealed that combining these four factors yielded a higher calculated AUC (0.80).
Conclusions: Gender, histology, pretreatment serum CEA level and SUVmax are significant predictors for EGFR mutations in NSCLC. Combining these factors in predicting EGFR mutations has a moderate diagnostic accuracy, and is helpful in guiding anti-tumor treatment.
Methods: We retrospectively reviewed medical records of 210 NSCLC patients who underwent EGFR mutation test and 18F-FDG positron emission tomography/computed tomography (PET/CT) scan before antitumor therapy. The associations between EGFR mutations and patients’ characteristics, serum CEA, PET/ CT imaging characteristics maximal standard uptake value (SUVmax) of the primary tumor were analyzed. Receiver-operating characteristic (ROC) curve was used to assess the predictive value of these factors.
Results: EGFR mutations were found in 70 patients (33.3%). EGFR mutations were more common in high CEA group (CEA ≥7.0 ng/mL) than in low CEA group (CEA <7.0 ng/mL) (40.4% vs. 27.6%; P=0.05). Females (P<0.001), non-smokers (P<0.001), patients with adenocarcinoma (P<0.001) and SUVmax <9.0 (P=0.001) were more likely to be EGFR mutation-positive. Multivariate analysis revealed that gender, tumor histology, pretreatment serum CEA level, and SUVmax were the most significant predictors for EGFR mutations. The ROC curve revealed that combining these four factors yielded a higher calculated AUC (0.80).
Conclusions: Gender, histology, pretreatment serum CEA level and SUVmax are significant predictors for EGFR mutations in NSCLC. Combining these factors in predicting EGFR mutations has a moderate diagnostic accuracy, and is helpful in guiding anti-tumor treatment.
