Cytogenetic damage and ras p21 oncoprotein levels from patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), untreated lung cancer and healthy controls

The purpose of the present communication was to determine in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), untreated lung cancer and hea lthy controls if there was a possible association between the disease state and biomarkers of cytogenetic damage and ras p21 oncoprotein levels, and i f various exogenous confounding factors such as smoking habit and endogenou s ones (sex, cancer in the immediate family) could affect these biomarkers. The individuals in all groups were as well-matched as possible for age to determine if this could be eliminated as a confounder. Peripheral blood and plasma were collected from 20 COPD patients, 31 cancer patients and 20 hea lthy controls. Chromosomal aberrations (CA), sister chromatid exchanges (SC E) and high frequency SCE cells (HFC) were examined from the blood and ras p21 oncoproteins from the plasma. These parameters were used as biomarkers of genotoxic anomalies. All the biomarkers were examined for their relation ship to the confounding factors. Results were analysed by a t-test, analysi s of variance (ANOVA) and stepwise multivariate regression analysis. There was an increase in CA, although not statistically so, in COPD and cancer pa tients by comparison with healthy controls, but there was a statistically s ignificant increase in SCE, HFC and ras p21 oncoproteins. There was also a statistically significant difference between respiratory volume parameters in COPD patients and controls. Respiratory parameters were not measured in cancer patients. Ras p21 oncoproteins were also statistically significantly increased in the COPD and cancer patients, suggesting that the disease sta te alone might be sufficient to increase the oncoproteins, or that some of the COPD patients were in the process of developing cancer or perhaps some would die from COPD before cancer developed.:Smoking was shown to have a ma rked effect on all parameters investigated. Ex-smokers showed less effects. Since age was very well controlled, there was little effect due to age. Th ere was an effect due to sex, but cancer in the immediate family had little effect on any of the parameters. (C) 1999 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.