A study of cyst fluid and plasma carcinoembryonic antigen in patients with cystic ovarian neoplasms.

Cyst fluid and plasma carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) levels were measured in 11 patients with ovarian cyst-adenocarcinoma and in 16 patients with benign ovarian neoplasms. In patients with ovarian cancer, plasma CEA levels were not elevated above 2.5 ng/ml unless cyst fluid CEA levels were 4 to 16 mu-g/ml. In this series, cystic and plasma CEA levels were elevated most consistently in patients with mucinous ovarian tumors. Furthermore, on the basis of molecular size and immunoreactivity by immunodiffusion, ovarian cancer cyst fluid CEA and colonic cancer CEA had similar immunochemical properties. Consistent with the findings in other neoplasms, follow-up studies showed that plasma CEA levels returned to the normal range between 2 and 12 weeks after surgical excision of the ovarian tumor. It is concluded that plasma CEA is of value in the management of patients with ovarian mucinous cystadenocarcinoma.