Marked increase in serum CA 19-9 level in patients with alcoholic cirrhosis: report of four cases.

We report four cases of marked increase in serum carbohydrate antigen (CA 19-9) levels in patients with severe alcoholic cirrhosis without any evidence of gastric or pancreatic carcinoma. Brief reports were obtained from two hepatology units of four cirrhotic patients, three of them with alcoholic hepatitis. In the four cases, improvement of liver function and disappearance of jaundice were associated with a decrease to normal serum CA 19-9 levels. These observations show that a marked increase in serum CA 19-9 level in patients with severe hepatic dysfunction is not diagnostic of pancreatic or gastric carcinoma.