Searchable abstracts of presentations at key conferences in endocrinology
Endocrine Abstracts (2020) 70 AEP881 | DOI: 10.1530/endoabs.70.AEP881

ECE2020 Audio ePoster Presentations Thyroid (144 abstracts)

The diagnostic value of basal and calcium-stimulated procalcitonin for the diagnosis of medullary thyroid cancer: Preliminary results from a multicentric experience

Simona Censi 1 , Marta Di Stefano 2 , Andrea Repaci 3 , Jacopo Manso 1 , Uberto Pagotto 3 , Loris Bertazza 1 , Susi Barollo 1 , Mario Plebani 4 , Carla Colombo 2 , Laura Fugazzola 2 & Caterina Mian 1


1University of Paduva, Endocrinology Unit, Department of Medicine (DIMED), Padua, Italy; 2Division of Endocrine and Metabolic Diseases, IRCCS Istituto Auxologico Italiano, Milan, Italy; 3Alma Mater Studiorum – University of Bologna, Endocrinology Unit and Centre for Applied Biomedical Research, Department of Medical and Surgical Sciences, S. Orsola-Malpighi Hospital, Bologna, Italy; 4University of Padua, Department of Laboratory Medicine, Padua, Italy


Background: Calcitonin (CT) is the most sensitive marker for MTC diagnosis. By the way, many pre-analytical, analytical and post-analytical pitfalls worsen its accuracy. Procalcitonin (proCT), a CT precursor, has been suggested as a valuable complementary test in MTC diagnosis, given its stability and the reproducibility between different assay kits.

Material and Methods: basal CT (bCT) and proCT (bproCT) and stimulated CT (bCT) and proCT (sproCT) (2–5–10 and 20 minutes)were measured in 37 patients (14M, 23F; median age: 55 years, range: 5–77 years) that underwent surgical excision. At the histological report, 22 were MTC, while the others were C-cell hyperplasias (HCCs) or non-C-cell lesions. 17/37 (45.9%) were carriers of a RET mutation. Calcium gluconate at the dose of 25 mg/Kg based on adjusted body weight was administered. bproCT was considered positive when ≥ 0.04 mg/l, while CT when ≥ 10 ng/l.

Results: there was a correlation between bCT and bproCT (P < 0.0001, r = 0.75). A significant correlation was found between MTC tumor size and bproCT (P = 0.0062, r = 0.58), as well as with bCT (P = 0.01, r = 0.54).Positive bproCT showed higher specificity than positive bCT in the diagnosis of MTC with respect to non MTC lesions (CCHs or other lesions) (53% vs 40%), with higher positive predictive value (PPV) (70% vs 66.6%). The combination of elevated bCT and bproCT increased the specificity of bCT value from 40% to 67% and its PPV from 67% to 75%. bCT and bproCT showed the same accuracy in RET-wild-type (RETwt) and RET-mutated patients. Applying ROC curve, we could identify a cut-off of 0.07 mg/l for bproCT, able to identify a MTC (sensitivity = 68%, specificity = 87%, AUC = 0.764, P = 0.0009), regardless of the gender. There was a correlation between sCT and sproCT (P < 0.0001, r = 0.64). A positive correlation existed between MTC tumor size and sproCT (P = 0.0018, r = 0.64) and with sCT (P = 0.0001, r = 0.75). Higher values of median proCT increase were found in MTC versus non-MTC (median increase of 0.22 mg/l in MTC versus 0.02 mg/l in non-MTC, P = 0.0003). Applying the ROC curve, a sproCT value > 0.19 was able to identify an MTC (sensitivity = 72%, specificity = 93%, AUC: 0.806, P < 0.001), regardless of the gender. Combining bproCT and sproCT specificity for MTC increased up to 93% (94% VPP).

Conclusions: proCT calcium-stimulated levels are significantly higher in MTC than in non-MTC and are correlate with tumour size. Basal and stimulated proCT can be used in combination with bCT and sCT to increase its specificity in biochemical diagnosis of MTC.

Volume 70

22nd European Congress of Endocrinology

Online
05 Sep 2020 - 09 Sep 2020

European Society of Endocrinology 

Browse other volumes

Article tools

My recent searches

No recent searches.