Serum folate binding capacity in patients with solid tumors

Total and unsaturated folate binding capacity (TFBC-UFBC) was measured in 44 normal volunteers and in 77 patients with solid tumors; of them 31 had a lung cancer, 18 a cancer of the gastrointestinal tract (GI), and 28 a breast cancer. With the exception of patients with cancer of the stomach, all the other groups showed a significant increase in TFBC. An increase in UFBC was statistically observed in patients with lung cancer and cancer of the GI tract. No correlation was observed in breast cancer between the presence of hormone receptors on cancer tissue and the value of TFBC. However, a significant increase in TFBC was noted in this group of patients when metastases were present.