[Evaluation of tumor marker in ovarian dermoid cyst]

Since ovarian dermoid cyst originates in parthenogenesis of the oocyte, it contains various kinds of tissues. Therefore, some tumor markers are expected to be positive. Clinical features of 174 pathologically confirmed dermoid cysts between Jan., 1985 and Aug., 1989 were reviewed, especially concerning tumor markers. The age of the patients was 11 years to 71 years (Mean 35.0 +/- 0.9 years). The weight of the dermoid cyst was 5g to 2.540g (mean 225.9 +/- 26.3g), while most of them were below 200g. The site of the tumors was similar on both the right and left. CA19-9 showed the highest positive rate of 45.5% (40/80). CA125 was second 12.7% (16/126) in markers with more than 20 examined cases, while the rate for AFP, Ferritin, CEA, LDH and TPA was 2.7% (3/110), 2.6% (1/38), 1.6% (2/128), 0.6% (1/161), 0% (0/24), respectively. SCC, IAP and beta 2-MG were examined in less than 20 cases and the positive rate was 18.8% (3/16), 9.1% (1/11) and 8.3% (1/12), respectively. There was no significant relationship between tumor weight and the CA19-9 concentration. In some cases, the serum CA19-9 concentration was followed up after the operation. The half life of CA19-9 was clinically estimated at 4.9 +/- 1.1 days.