Department of Urology, Hamamatsu Medical Center, Shizuoka, Japan.
Jpn J Clin Oncol. 2012 Aug;42(8):767-9. doi: 10.1093/jjco/hys089. Epub 2012 Jun 11.
α-Fetoprotein is a well-established tumor marker for non-seminomatous germ cell tumors. Elevated α-fetoprotein levels, however, result from a variety of clinical conditions. Hereditary persistence of α-fetoprotein is a rare benign disorder in which serum α-fetoprotein levels are persistently elevated, but there are no disabilities and symptoms. A 35-year-old man was diagnosed with pT1 testicular embryonal carcinoma. Post-orchiectomy α-fetoprotein levels remained persistently elevated without clinical or radiographic abnormalities. His mother's elevated α-fetoprotein levels confirmed the diagnosis of hereditary persistence of α-fetoprotein. Lens culinaris agglutinin-reactive α-fetoprotein fractions have been reported as a useful diagnostic marker for non-seminomatous germ cell tumors; in this patient, its measurement showed high non-reactive α-fetoprotein levels, which indicated the low probability of residual tumors. The present case represents the third case of hereditary persistence of α-fetoprotein in Japan, and the first in which the α-fetoprotein subfraction was evaluated.
甲胎蛋白是一种成熟的非精原细胞瘤生殖细胞肿瘤的肿瘤标志物。然而，升高的甲胎蛋白水平源自多种临床情况。甲胎蛋白遗传性持续存在是一种罕见的良性疾病，其血清甲胎蛋白水平持续升高，但没有残疾和症状。一名 35 岁男性被诊断为 pT1 睾丸胚胎癌。睾丸切除术 后，甲胎蛋白水平持续升高，无临床或影像学异常。他母亲的甲胎蛋白水平升高证实了甲胎蛋白遗传性持续存在的诊断。报道称，扁豆凝集素反应性甲胎蛋白片段是一种用于非精原细胞瘤生殖细胞肿瘤的有用诊断标志物；在该患者中，其检测显示高非反应性甲胎蛋白水平，这表明肿瘤残留的可能性较低。本病例代表日本第 3 例甲胎蛋白遗传性持续存在病例，也是首例对甲胎蛋白亚组分进行评估的病例。
