The diagnostic and prognostic value of pretreatment serum creatine kinase bb levels in patients with neuroblastoma

Abstract

The serum levels of the BB isozyme of creatine kinase (CK‐BB) and neuron‐specific enolase (NSE) were measured before therapy in 35 patients with neuroblastoma. Sixty percent (21 of 35) of neuroblastoma patients had CK‐BB levels higher than 11 ng/ml. The extent of disease was associated with an increased incidence of elevated serum CK‐BB levels. The highest pretreatment serum CK‐BB titers were found in patients with Stage IV disease. A strong correlation between the pretreatment CK‐BB level and the outcome in patients with neuroblastoma was observed. Eleven (79%) of 12 patients who had a serum CK‐BB level greater than 15 ng/ml died, and eight of ten (80%) who had a serum level less than 11 ng/ml were alive and tumor‐free after 2 years. A positive linear correlation between the pretreatment CK‐BB and NSE (n = 35, r = 0.695) levels was found. Copyright © 1990 American Cancer Society