Epidermal cytoplasmic antibodies: incidence and type in normal persons and patients with melanoma.

Antibodies to epidermal cytoplasmic antigens were present in 25 to 34% of 32 normal persons and in 34 to 50% of 53 patients with melanoma. There were at least two different types of cytoplasmic antibodies. The most common reacted to cytoplasmic antigens present only in the upper layers of the epidermis. This type of antibody occurred with equal frequency in patients with melanoma and in normal persons. The increased incidence of cytoplasmic antibodies in melanoma was due to antibodies to cytoplasmic antigens present throughout the epidermis. These antibodies were 2 1/2 times more common in patients with melanoma than in normal persons. The presence of different cytoplasmic antigens in distinct strata of the epidermis suggests they result from epidermal cell differentiation. The epidermal cytoplasmic antigens present throughout the epidermis appear to partially cross-react with cytoplasmic antigens in melanoma cells.