Urinary modified nucleosides as tumor markers in cancer of the urinary organs or female genital tract.

Using a sensitive and specific method involving high-performance liquid chromatography, urinary levels of four modified nucleosides--pseudouridine (psi), 1-methylinosine (m1I), 1-methyladenosine (m1A), and 1-methylguanosine (m1G)--were investigated before and after treatment in 31 patients with cancer of the urinary organs or the female genital tract. Before treatment m1I was the most frequently elevated nucleoside (77%). Pretreatment urinary levels of psi, m1I, and m1A in patients with stage 2-4 cancer of the female genital tract were significantly elevated compared to human healthy volunteers (p less than 0.005). Compared with the other nucleosides, psi appeared to correlate more closely with the clinical outcome (progression or regression) of patients with cancer of the female genital tract. In the case of patients with cancer of the urinary organs, m1I followed the clinical outcome better than the other nucleosides measured. Therefore psi and m1I seem to be useful for monitoring genito-urinary cancers.