Related Experiment Video For carcinoembryonic antigen
Updated: Feb 27, 2026
Evidence for EpCAM and Cytokeratin Expressing Epithelial Cells in Normal Human and Murine Blood and Bone Marrow
Published on: April 21, 2023
Serum carcinoembryonic antigen is positively associated with leukocyte count in Korean adults
Yu-Jin Kwon1,2, Hye-Sun Lee3, Jae-Yong Shim4
1Department of Family Medicine, Yong-in Severance Hospital, Yonsei University College of Medicine, Yong-in, Korea.
Background:
Emerging evidence shows that serum carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) levels may modestly be increased in non-neoplastic conditions such as cardiometabolic diseases, which are increasingly being seen as inflammatory diseases. Leukocyte count is widely evaluated marker of inflammation in clinical practice and a useful predictor of cardiometabolic disease. In this study, we aimed to determine the relationship between serum CEA levels and leukocyte counts in Korean adults.
Methods:
This cross-sectional study included a total of 19 834 individuals enrolled from a health promotion center between November 2006 and July 2010. Multiple linear regression analysis was performed to investigate the association between serum CEA levels and leukocyte counts after adjusting for confounding variables.
Results:
According to both stepwise-method and enter-method multiple linear regression analyses, serum CEA levels were positively and independently associated with leukocyte counts (P<.001) after adjusting for age, sex, body mass index, systolic blood pressure, diastolic blood pressure, total cholesterol, triglyceride, HDL-cholesterol, cigarette smoking, alcohol ingestion, physical activity, diabetes mellitus, and anti-inflammatory drugs.
Conclusions:
We demonstrate a positive relationship between serum CEA levels and leukocyte counts in Korean adults. Our results suggested that an elevated serum CEA level may reflect chronic inflammation state.
