Clinically useful calcitonin assays.

Calcitonin assays are essential tools for research into calcitonin (CT) and C-cell physiology and pathophysiology. Several existing radio immunoassays for CT, based on polyclonal antisera, are generally reliable for detection and follow-up of patients having medullary thyroid carcinoma. Occasionally, however, these assays suffer from problems of specificity and sensitivity. Two-site immunometric techniques for CT offer potential for great improvement in sensitivity, specificity, and turnaround time over those based on classical competitive-binding radioimmunoassays.