Changing expression of ABH blood group and cryptic T-antigens of noninvasive and superficially invasive papillary transitional cell carcinoma of the bladder from initial occurrence to malignant progression.

Thirteen patients who developed malignant progression after frequent recurrence of noninvasive or superficially invasive (Ta or T1) papillary transitional cell carcinoma of the bladder were studied for expression of ABH-antigens in tumor tissues throughout their clinical courses and cryptic Thomsen-Friedenreich antigen (T-Ag) expression in the tumor tissues was examined simultaneously in nine of them. Five patients who experienced recurrent bladder tumors for more than 5 years without any malignant progression were served as control. ABH-antigens in initial tumors were negative in only two of 13 patients developing malignant progression and in two of five controls. Cryptic T-Ag was positive in all patients examined. Recurrent tumors revealed eliminated or decreased expression of ABH-antigens and cryptic T-Ag before malignant progression in, respectively, ten of 11 and six of nine patients with antigen-positive initial tumors. In contrast, recurrent tumor of controls with antigen-positive initial tumors showed neither elimination nor decrease in expression of antigens throughout their clinical courses.