CA-125 IN PERITONEAL-FLUID FROM PATIENTS WITH NONMALIGNANT GYNECOLOGIC DISORDERS

To assess the diagnostic value of measuring CA-125 levels in peritonea l fluid from women with nonmalignant gynecologic disorders, toe determ ined CA-125 levels in peritoneal fluid and in serum um collected simul taneously from 46 women undergoing gynecologic surgery. Patients with benign ovarian disease, nonovarian gynecologic pathology and severe en dometriosis had, on average, higher CA-125 levels in peritoneal fluid than did patients with a normal pelvis and those with mild endometrios is. There was no obvious correlation between peritoneal fluid and ser um levels of CA-125. Our data show that (1) measurement of serum CA-12 5 levels is not useful distinguishing between different benign gynecol ogic disorders, and (2) levels of CA-125 in peritoneal fluid in benign gynecologic disorders al e comparable to the reported lower range of revers observed in women with intraperitoneal malignancies.