Clinical significance of detection of soluble intercellular adhesion molecule-1 for patients with lung cancer

Objective To assess the relationship between the serum concentration of soluble intercellular adhesion molecule-1(sICAM-1) and the effect of intravenous chemotherapy in patients with lung cancer, and to compare the serum levels of sICAM-1 in patients with recurrent lung cancer and those without postoperatively. Methods Both 20 advanced and recurrent lung cancer patients received chemotherapy, and the therapeutic effects were evaluated after 2 cycles of treatment. The serum concentration of sICAM-1 was measured by the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay before the initiation of chemotherapy and after 2 weeks of each cycle of chemotherapy. The relationship between the serum level of sICAM-1 and the effect of chemotherapy was analysed. The serum level of sICAM-1 in 21 lung cancer patients who had undergone radical excision and 27 healthy controls was also measured at the same time. Results The serum levels of sICAM-1 in patients with advanced and recurrent lung cancer (526.6±213.9)ng/ml were significantly higher than those in healthy controls (281.3±109.8)ng/ml,(P0.01).For those in which chemotherapy was effective, the serum level of sICAM-1 was significantly descended after 1 cycle of treatment (P0.05) and continuously dropped after 2 cycles of treatment(P0.01); while in the ineffective cases, there were no significant changes after 1 cycle of treatment(P0.05). The serum sICAM-1 was significantly higher in recurrent lung cancer patients (580±243.9)ng/ml than nonrecurrent ones (380±140.9ng/ml, P0.01),and the latter were significantly higher than the healthy controls (P0.01).Conclusion Serum level of sICAM-1 is an early referential marker to evaluate the efficacy of chemotherapy and to check postoperative recurrence for lung cancer patients.