Diagnostic Accuracy of Cancer Antigen 15-3 as a Seromarker Among Recurrent Breast Carcinoma in Bangladesh

• Published in: Curēus (Palo Alto, CA) Vol. 16; no. 9; p. e68448
• Main Authors: Kabir, Rawnok Jahan, Mahmud, Refoyez, Kabir, Md Enamul, Ayub Ansary, Abdullah Md Abu, Sultana, Salma, Rahman, Mayisha, Adhikary, Dipannita, Moureen, Adneen, Ranjan, Redoy, Yusuf, Md Abdullah
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States Cureus Inc 02-09-2024; Cureus
• Subjects: Accuracy; Antigens; Biomarkers; Breast cancer; Cancer therapies; Chemotherapy; Cohort analysis; Family/General Practice; General Surgery; Hospitals; Mastectomy; Medical diagnosis; Medical prognosis; Mortality; Oncology; Pathology; Sample size; Statistical analysis; Womens health; Bangladesh; high risk breast cancer; breast cancer research; recurrence predictors; ca 15-3; ca breast prognostic markers
• ISSN: 2168-8184; 2168-8184
• DOI: 10.7759/cureus.68448

The diagnosis of recurrent breast carcinoma is crucial for patient treatment. The present study aimed to assess the diagnostic accuracy of cancer antigen 15-3 (CA 15-3) as a sero-marker among recurrent breast carcinoma patients.
This prospective observational study evaluated the serum CA 15-3 among women (age ≥18 years) with recurrent breast carcinoma. The CA 15-3 was measured by the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), and concentrations were stratified using a cut-off value of 30 U/mL. The receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve observed that the sensitivity and specificity of the CA 15-3 cut-off value and the area under the AUROC curve demonstrate the goodness-of-fit of the prediction model.
A total of 50 patients were recruited, with a mean age of 48.4 ±9.7years. The majority (n=28, 56.0%) of patients were 41 to 50 years old. Further, a total of 42 (84%) patients had high serum levels of CA 15-3, with a mean value of 72.7±9.5 U/mL. At the cut-off level of 30 U/mL, the ROC curve demonstrated sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value, and negative predictive value of 95.7%, 69.4%, 84.1%, and 72.8%, respectively, to diagnose recurrent breast carcinoma. Nonetheless, the area under the ROC (AUROC) curve was 0.712, indicating a satisfactory fit for the prediction model.
We found that CA 15-3 level ≥30 U/mL is highly sensitive and specific as a seromarker for detecting recurrent breast cancer among the Bangladeshi population. We recommend routinely monitoring breast cancer survivors using CA 15-3 biomarkers.