Alpha Fetoprotein Tumor Marker Range
Alpha fetoprotein tumor marker blood does this test have other names.
Alpha fetoprotein tumor marker range. The afp tumor marker test can be performed on a blood sample urine sample or sample of amniotic fluid. Alpha fetoprotein afp is a glycoprotein that is produced in early fetal life by the liver and by a variety of tumors including hepatocellular carcinoma hepatoblastoma and nonseminomatous germ cell tumors of the ovary and testis eg yolk sac and embryonal carcinoma. An afp or alpha fetoprotein tumor marker test one of many different types of.
Also sometimes called alpha 1 fetoprotein alpha fetoglobulin or alpha fetal protein is a protein that in humans is encoded by the afp gene. What is this test. Tumor markers are substances in the human body that are produced by tumors and secreted into the blood urine or other bodily fluids.
Most studies report elevated afp concentrations in approximately 70 of patients with hepatocellular carcinoma. A higher afp level doesn t always mean you have a health problem. Maternal afp serum level is used to screen for down syndrome neural tube defects and other chromosomal abnormalities.
Some people simply have more afp than is typical. Alpha fetoprotein afp is used as a tumor marker to help detect and diagnose cancers of the liver testicles and ovaries. What is an afp alpha fetoprotein tumor marker test.
Two thirds circumferential thickening of the wall over 4 cm in the lower rectum and a pararectal lymph node swelling about 8 mm in diameter was revealed by enhanced abdominal computed tomography ct and pelvic magnetic resonance imaging mri fig. The afp gene is located on the q arm of chromosome 4 4q25. Healthy adults should have very low levels of afp.
Other names for the test include total afp msafp maternal serum afp and alpha. Alpha fetoprotein tumor marker alpha fetoprotein afp is a 69 000 kd single chain polypeptide which is similar in size and structure to human serum albumin. In human embryos afp is first made in the yolk sac and later in the fetal liver.
Afp stands for alpha fetoprotein. Certain benign conditions can also raise these markers but significant elevations or a progressive rise can indicate a malignant process. Afp levels are usually high when a baby is born but fall to very low levels by the age of 1.
It is a protein made in the liver of a developing baby. Though the test is often ordered to monitor people with chronic liver diseases such as cirrhosis chronic hepatitis b or hepatitis c because they have an increased lifetime risk of developing liver cancer most current guidelines do not recommend this use. Afp is normally made by a fetus s liver and yolk sac.
Alpha fetoprotein is also produced by certain cancers such as liver or testicular cancer and is sometimes measured as a tumor marker see below. Serum tumor marker levels were increased to 8 8 ng ml in cea normal range 5 0 ng ml and 28 3 ng ml in afp normal range 7 0 ng ml.
