Specific IgA antibody to Epstein-Barr viral capsid antigen: A better marker for screening nasopharyngeal carcinoma than EBV-DNA detection by polymerase chain reaction

Nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) is strongly associated with Epstein-Barr vir us (EBV) infection. To assess whether EBV DNA detection by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) or presence of specific serum antibody to viral capsid anti gen (VCA) was a better marker for screening NPC, nasopharyngeal tissues and blood samples from 58 NPC patients and 24 non-NPC patients (23 with laryng otracheal stenosis and 1 with chronic tonsillitis) were tested for the pres ence of EBV DNA and serum specific VCA antibodies, respectively. EBV DNA wa s detected in 56 (96.5%) of NPC patients and 15 (62.5%) of non-NPC controls , with predominantly EBV type A in both groups. On the other hand, specific VCA IgA antibody was detected in the majority of NPC patients: 52 (89.7%) while only 4 (16.7%) were detected in non-NPC controls. Therefore, specific VCA IgA antibody may serve as a better marker for screening NPC than EBV D NA detected by PCR.