Eosinophil-cationic protein – A novel liquid prognostic biomarker in melanoma

Source: MDLinx, March 2019

In view of the observation that eosinophil cationic protein (ECP) mediates anticancer effects, such as tissue remodelling and cytotoxic activity, researchers examined the prognostic value of this marker in metastatic melanoma. They studied serum of 56 melanoma patients, collected at the time of diagnosis of metastatic disease, for measures of ECP levels by ELISA and correlated these measures with overall survival (OS) in patients before systemic therapy with immunotherapy or chemotherapy. Patients with high serum ECP above 12.2 ng/ml had the median OS of 12 months (n = 39), compared to 28 months for patients with ECP below this threshold (n = 17). Findings thus suggest that for these patients, ECP seems to be a novel prognostic serum marker for the outcome. This is observed independent of lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) and is easy to perform in clinical practice. The striking negative prognostic value of high ECP level may assist in patient management.

Menu