A Novel Marker for the Management of Patients Diagnosed with Endometrial Adenocarcinoma of the Uterus
HE4 a novel serum marker for endometrial cancer
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Abstract
Background: Currently, there are no accurate clinical biomarkers for the management of patients diagnosed with endometrial cancer. The biomarker HE4 is often overexpressed and found to be elevated in the serum of patients with endometrial cancers.
Objective: The objective of this trial was to assess the utility of HE4 as a biomarker for monitoring patients with endometrial cancer.
Methods: This was an IRB-approved trial utilizing residual serial serum samples from patients diagnosed with endometrial cancer. Clinical status was determined by a combination of physician assessment, physical exam, serum CA125 levels, and imaging. Two separate analyses were performed to assess changes in HE4 serum levels. The first method used a change of 25% over that of the previous serum HE4 value, and the second analysis employed a velocity of change calculation of serum HE4 levels over time.
Results: A total of 92 patients providing 799 serum samples were identified for analysis. Using a ≥25.0% increase of serum HE4 levels as an indicator of disease recurrence or progression, HE4 had an accuracy of 81.9% and a negative predictive value of 91.4%. The velocity of change analysis an accuracy of 85.4% with a negative predictive value of 86.7%.
Conclusion: HE4 is highly accurate for detecting disease recurrence or progression and is a valuable clinical tool for monitoring patients with endometrial cancer.
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Copyright (c) 2026 Moore RG, et al.
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
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