COMPLEMENTARY VALUE OF 5 CARCINOMA-MARKERS FOR THE DIAGNOSIS OF MALIGNANT MESOTHELIOMA, ADENOCARCINOMA-METASTASIS, AND REACTIVE MESOTHELIUMIN SEROUS EFFUSIONS

Cytological slides of serous fluids of 41 malignant mesotheliomas, 88 metastatic adenocarcinomas, and 25 reactive effusions were immunostain ed with the antibodies anti-CEA, MOC-31, Leu-M1, Ber-EP4, and B72.3. M ost mesotheliomas and all reactive fluids failed to stain with these a ntibodies. The sensitivity of the five markers to detect carcinoma cel ls differed remarkably. Especially MOC-31, Ber-EP4, and B72.3 stained with a high number of carcinoma cases and the complementary value of B er-EP4 and B72.3 to immunostain carcinoma cells was impressive: 94% of the metastatic adenocarcinoma cases reacted with Ber-EP4 or B72.3 in contrast to 1 of 41 malignant mesotheliomas. (C) 1997 Wiley-Liss, Inc.