Multi-center study on the application potential of Siaα-2,6Gal in early and differential diagnosis of lung cancer

Abstract

Objective

This study aimed to investigate the application potential of the abnormal glycan structure Siaα-2,6Gal in the early and differential diagnosis of lung cancer.

Methods

Clinical data and serum samples from 730 patients and 120 healthy individuals participating in clinical trials on Siaα-2,6Gal were collected at three medical centers between January 2022 and June 2023. The levels of Siaα-2,6Gal, carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA), cytokeratin 19 fragment antigen (CYFRA21-1), squamous cell carcinoma antigen (SCC), neuron-specific enolase (NSE), and pro-gastrin-releasing peptide (ProGRP) in serum were measured. The application potentials of these markers in the early and differential diagnosis, classification, and staging of lung cancer were explored.

Results

(1) Serum Siaα-2,6Gal levels in the lung cancer group were 2,606 (1,970–3,458) U/mL, significantly higher than those in the benign lung disease, miscellaneous malignant tumor, miscellaneous benign disease, and healthy individual groups at 1,359 (950–1,528), 1,252 (903–1,532), 1,196 (850–1,490), and 1,210 (1,100–1,287) U/mL (P < 0.0001). (2) Serum Siaα-2,6Gal levels in the early-stage lung cancer (stages 0–II) group were 2,576 (1,929–3,338) U/mL, significantly higher than those in the benign pulmonary nodule group at 1,419 (1,105–1,820) U/mL (P < 0.0001). (3) Receiver operating characteristic curves showed that Siaα-2,6Gal had a high diagnostic efficiency for lung cancer (area under the curve (AUC) = 0.9217), significantly superior to CEA, CYFRA21-1, SCC, NSE, and ProGRP (AUCs of 0.6618, 0.6605, 0.5783, 0.5985, and 0.6381).

Conclusion

Siaα-2,6Gal is a promising biomarker for lung cancer diagnosis and may offer superior differential diagnosis of early-stage lung cancer from benign pulmonary nodules compared to traditional tumor markers.