C-Reactive Protein and Melanoma Outcome

Hensin Tsao, MD, PhD reviewing Fang S et al. J Clin Oncol 2015 Apr 20.

Poorer survival and disease progression were associated with higher CRP levels.

Multiple studies have been performed to look for serological markers of melanoma prognosis and progression. Immune and inflammatory mechanisms have a role in melanoma prognosis. C-reactive protein (CRP) is synthesized in response to proinflammatory cytokines, and elevated levels are a known cardiovascular risk marker. It has been associated with poor prognosis in breast, lung, and other cancers, and results of a previous study suggest that it could be prognostic in early-stage melanoma.

These investigators examined plasma samples from 1144 patients with melanoma for CRP determination. Their primary aim was to discover whether increased levels of CRP in plasma were associated with melanoma disease stage, recurrence, or survival. Elevated CRP level (>10 mg/L) was significantly associated with poorer overall survival in patients with any-stage, stage I/II, or stage III/IV disease and poorer disease-free survival in those with stage I/II disease (P<0.001 for all comparisons). In patients who underwent sequential CRP evaluation, the investigators noted a significant association (P<0.001) between an increase in CRP and melanoma disease progression versus no progression.

Citation(s):

Fang S et al. C-reactive protein as a marker of melanoma progression. J Clin Oncol 2015 Apr 20; 33:1389.