Original scientific paper

D-dimer levels in patients with metastatic liver cancer before and after surgery

Jelena Culej ; Department of Transfusion Medicine, University Hospital for Tumors, Sestre milosrdnice University Hospital Center, Zagreb, Croatia
Marija Skoko ; Department of Transfusion Medicine, University Hospital for Tumors, Sestre milosrdnice University Hospital Center, Zagreb, Croatia
Irena Mihić-Lasan ; Department of Transfusion Medicine, University Hospital for Tumors, Sestre milosrdnice University Hospital Center, Zagreb, Croatia
Tiha Vučemilo ; Department of Transfusion Medicine, University Hospital for Tumors, Sestre milosrdnice University Hospital Center, Zagreb, Croatia
Deana Šturm ; Department of Transfusion Medicine, University Hospital for Tumors, Sestre milosrdnice University Hospital Center, Zagreb, Croatia

Abstract

Vein thrombosis is a common complication in patients with cancer. Tumor cells produce or have expressed on their surface many procoagulant factors such as tissue factor and cancer procoagulant. Besides procoagulant activity of the tumor cells, surgical procedure, chemotherapy treatment, immobility and disease stage are additional factors for thrombosis development. Laboratory test used in diagnosis of thrombosis is D-dimer level measurement. Because of its high negative predictive value it has been used to exclude deep vein thrombosis in patients presented with deep vein thrombosis symptoms. Since its levels could be increased in patients with cancer, using this test in cancer population should be taken with caution. The aim of this study was to asses D-dimer levels in a specific group of patients with metastatic liver cancer before and after surgery, and determine the difference between these two measurements.
The study included 43 patients of both sexes, average age 68 (46 – 80) years, with metastatic liver carcinoma. Concentrations of D-dimer after surgery were higher than before surgery accounting for 2851 (617 – 3650) μg/L and 364 (229-615) μg/L, respectively, P < 0.001. The lowest difference between measurements was 51 μg/L and the highest one was 10644 μg/L.
We confirmed the trend in D-dimer levels before and after surgery reported in the literature and showed that these values can vary in a wide range.

Keywords

D-dimer; liver carcinoma; surgery

Hrčak ID:

276095

URI

https://hrcak.srce.hr/276095

Publication date:

30.11.2011.

Article data in other languages: croatian

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