Perioperative dynamics and significance of plasma-free amino acid profiles in colorectal cancer

Abstract

BackgroundFor early detection of cancer, we have previously developed the AminoIndex Cancer Screening (AICS) system, which quantifies 6 plasma-free amino acids (PFAAs) in blood samples. Herein, we examined the usefulness of the AICS in patients with colorectal cancer (CRC) by comparing the preoperative and postoperative PFAA profiles.MethodsOur study cohort consisted of 62 patients who had undergone curative resection for CRC at our cancer center, with no recurrence at the time of the study. Blood samples were collected from fasted patients within 1 week before the resection and at 0.5–6.5 years post-resection. Following plasmapheresis, the PFAA levels were measured via liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry, and the AICS values were computed (the higher the value, the greater the probability of cancer). Risk was calculated from the AICS value and ranked as A, B, or C, with rank C representing the highest risk. All patients in our study were rank B + C.ResultsThe postoperative AICS value was lower than the preoperative value in 57 of the 62 patients; the rank was also lower postoperatively (49 patients, p < 0.001). The decline in both was stage-independent, even occurring in patients with right-sided tumors or poorly differentiated adenocarcinomas. For comparative purposes, the levels of 2 tumor markers (carbohydrate antigen 19–9 and carcinoembryonic antigen) were also examined; these were within the reference ranges in 70–80% of patients preoperatively and in 80–90% postoperatively.ConclusionWe suggest that tumor-bearing conditions alter the PFAA profiles, which may be used to predict prognosis and monitor for recurrence in CRC patients after tumor resection.Trial registrationThis trial has been retrospectively registered at UMIN-CTR R000028005, Oct 06, 2016.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (10.1186/s12893-018-0344-0) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Preoperative AICS (lung) abnormalities predict postoperative recurrence in patients undergoing curative resection for non-small cell lung cancer

“…Furthermore, similar ndings were reported for other types of cancers [26,27]. Therefore, changes in amino acid pro les, e.g., AICS values, before and after treatment may be used to predict prognosis and monitor recurrence in patients with several cancers [4,10,26,27].…”

“…We recently reported that AICS (lung) abnormalities in patients with lung cancer may be normalized (from rank C to A or B), when the tumor is completely removed, indicating that AICS (lung) values show some reversibility based on the disease condition [10]. Furthermore, similar ndings were reported for other types of cancers [26,27]. Therefore, changes in amino acid pro les, e.g., AICS values, before and after treatment may be used to predict prognosis and monitor recurrence in patients with several cancers [4,10,26,27].…”

Preoperative AminoIndex Cancer Screening (AICS) abnormalities predict postoperative recurrence in patients undergoing curative resection for non-small cell lung cancer

“…We recently reported that most patients preoperatively diagnosed with rank C potentially exhibited a reduction in the AICS (lung) rank if they were cured after surgery [10]. Furthermore, similar ndings were reported for other types of cancers [27,28]. In contrast, some NSCLC patients without AICS (lung) abnormalities in the preoperative test, namely, those diagnosed with rank A or B, also showed tumor recurrence, even after curative resection.…”

“…In contrast, some NSCLC patients without AICS (lung) abnormalities in the preoperative test, namely, those diagnosed with rank A or B, also showed tumor recurrence, even after curative resection. These ndings demonstrated that the condition of AICS (lung) abnormalities themselves may not only re ect the tumor-bearing status in patients, but may also be strongly associated with some biological grade of malignant characteristics associated with tumor proliferation, invasiveness, and/or metastasis [4,10,27,28]. However, no signi cant differences were observed in recurrence patterns in the present cohort, suggesting that AICS (lung) abnormalities are not associated with the metastatic route.…”

The Translational Status of Cancer Liquid Biopsies

“…Aminoindex Cancer Screening (AICS, Ajinomoto Co., Inc.) system is a blood test based on multivariate analysis of plasma-free amino-acids (PFAA) [370,371]. The AICS assay has been validated in a series of clinical trials covering approximately 2,500 patients with 7 different types of cancer and 15,000 healthy controls [372][373][374]. The AICS test is currently being used to screen for early detection of lung cancer in Japan [372,375].…”