Serum levels of C-reactive protein in patients with pulmonary tuberculosis and malignant tumors of the chest.

Serum C-reactive protein (CRP) concentration was studied in patients with newly diagnosed post-primary pulmonary tuberculosis and in those with malignant intrathoracic tumors. In tuberculosis, there was a wide scatter in CRP values and the mean did not differ from that of the tumor patients. Tuberculous patients with cavitation in chest X-ray had significantly higher levels of CRP than those without as well as healthy controls. Normal CRP did not exclude tuberculosis and all the values were below 100 mg/l.