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Adaptation of Semiautomated Circulating Tumor Cell (CTC) Assays for Clinical and Preclinical Research Applications
Published on: February 28, 2014
Tumour markers: their use and misuse by clinicians
Peter J McGinley1, Eric S Kilpatrick
1Department of Clinical Biochemistry, Hull Royal Infirmary, Hull HU3 2JZ, UK.
Annals of Clinical Biochemistry
|November 25, 2003
Summary
Serum tumour marker requests are increasing rapidly and often inappropriately requested, leading to potentially misleading results for patients with cancer. Auditing requests against guidelines is crucial for appropriate use.
Area of Science:
- Oncology
- Clinical Pathology
- Medical Diagnostics
Background:
- Guidelines for serum tumour marker use in cancer management exist.
- This study audited tumour marker requests against established guidelines.
- The audit was conducted in a busy teaching hospital over a 12-month period.
Purpose of the Study:
- To audit the appropriateness of serum tumour marker requests.
- To compare actual requesting practices with existing clinical guidelines.
- To identify trends and potential areas for improvement in tumour marker utilization.
Main Methods:
- Collected all tumour marker requests from April 2001 to March 2002.
- Utilized laboratory computer data for request tracking.
- Examined case notes for a 24-hour period of hospital requests (excluding PSA).
Main Results:
- Tumour marker workload increased by 125% between 1997-98 and 2001-02.
- Inappropriate requests included those on the wrong sex (e.g., CA125 on men) and testing before biopsy.
- Analysis of case notes revealed markers were often measured before biopsy, and results could be misleading.
Conclusions:
- Serum tumour marker workload is escalating significantly.
- Frequent and inappropriate tumour marker requests were identified.
- Misuse of tumour markers can lead to falsely reassuring or unduly alarming patient results.
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