cysteinyldopa and Liver-Neoplasms

The urinary excretion of 5-S-cysteinyldopa (5-S-CD) is known to be increased in certain patients with melanoma. To evaluate its diagnostic and prognostic utility, we measured the urinary excretion of 5-S-CD on at least three different occasions in 50 patients with melanoma. No significant increase was found in 26 patients without metastases, in 10 patients with regional lymph node metastasis and 2 patients with amelanotic melanoma. However, all the 12 patients with distant metastases demonstrated a significant increase. The patients with 5-S-CD > 1,000 micrograms/day survived for a mean of 8.1 +/- 5.6 months, while those with 5-S-CD > 10,000 micrograms/day survived for 3.5 +/- 3.7 months. All the 4 patients with a maximum excretion of 5-S-CD > 40,000 micrograms/day had multiple liver metastases. In conclusion, while data on the urinary excretion of 5-S-CD was not useful in the detection of early regional lymph node metastases, its increase indicated the presence of distant metastases and also provided prognostic information.

Topics: Adult; Aged; Biomarkers, Tumor; Cysteinyldopa; Female; Follow-Up Studies; Humans; Liver Neoplasms; Lymphatic Metastasis; Male; Melanoma; Middle Aged; Physical Examination; Prognosis; Radiography; Sensitivity and Specificity; Skin Neoplasms; Survival Rate

5-S-cysteinyldopa (5-S-DC) is a precursor of melanin. Its serum and urinary level can reflect melanoma progression. In this study we examined the concentration changes of 5-S-CD in melanomas of different clinical stages and in patients with different symptoms of melanoma, during and after treatment.. Serum samples were taken from 252 melanoma patients on 765 occasions, from June 1996 to July 1998. Levels of 5-S-CD were determined by HPLC.. The value of 5-S-CD in patients with primary melanoma and in patients without symptoms ranged around the normal level. There was a significant difference between the values of patients with or without symptoms. There was also a significant difference between the 5-S-CD values at clinical Stage I and Stage III, as well as at clinical Stage II and Stage III, respectively. Analysing the values of patients with symptoms we found a significant difference between the mean values of primary tumour and stage III, between values in lymph node metastasis and stage III, between values in lung metastasis and stage III. The tumour burden was found to correlate with a rising marker level. In 7% of the symptomatic patients that had a marker level under the upper limit, amelanotic primary tumour was detected.. According to the high marker level in lung and liver metastases, the marker might be useful in monitoring both patients with disease free ocular melanomas, to detect liver metastasis and high-risk patients after surgical removal of the primary tumour to reveal lung metastases.

Topics: Adolescent; Adult; Aged; Aged, 80 and over; Biomarkers; Biomarkers, Tumor; Cysteinyldopa; Humans; Liver Neoplasms; Lung Neoplasms; Melanoma; Middle Aged; Neoplasm Staging; Skin Neoplasms

Serum S-100 protein is widely used as a marker of melanoma and since 5-S-cysteinyldopa (5-S-CD) is a precursor of melanin its serum and urinary levels can reflect melanoma progression. In this study we examined the concentration changes of serum S-100 protein and 5-S-CD in 252 melanoma patients of different clinical stages. Serum samples were taken from 252 melanoma patients at 860 times, from June 1996 to July 1998. The serum S-100 protein was measured by the immunoluminometric assay, levels of 5-S-CD was determined by HPLC. The value of S-100 protein in patients with primary melanoma (0.11m mg/l) and in patients without symptoms (0.15 m mg/l) ranged around the normal level (0.01 0.12 m mg/l). There was a significant difference between the values of patients with or without symptoms. There was a similarly significant difference between the S-100 values of clinical Stage I (0.11 mg/l) and Stage III (2.91 mg/l) as well as between those of clinical Stage II (0.47 mg/l) and Stage III (2.91 mg/l), respectively. Analyzing the values of patients with symptoms we observed significant difference between the S-100 protein values of patients with primary tumor and those with solitary or multiple distant metastases. In case of 5-S-CD significant difference was found between clinical Stage I and III as well as clinical Stage II and III. Furthermore, there was a significant difference between the mean marker values of patients with primary tumor, lymph node, lung metastasis and clinical stage III.

Topics: Biomarkers, Tumor; Cysteinyldopa; Disease Progression; Disease-Free Survival; Humans; Liver Neoplasms; Lung Neoplasms; Lymph Nodes; Melanins; Melanoma; Models, Biological; Neoplasm Metastasis; S100 Proteins; Skin Neoplasms

A human melanoma metastasis was found to contain a substance identical with synthetic glutathionedopa when examined by means of an automatic amino acid analyser, chromatography on a Dowex-50 column, thin-layer electrophoresis, and by fluorimetry. The presence of glutathionedopa in melanoma tissue and of enzymes capable of hydrolysing the glutathione moiety of the molecule, together with the absence of glutathionedopa in the urine, suggest that glutathionedopa is an intermediate substance in the formation of 5-S-cysteinyldopa.

Topics: Cysteinyldopa; Dihydroxyphenylalanine; Glutathione; Humans; Liver Neoplasms; Melanoma