Significance of squamous cell carcinoma (SCC)-related antigens in cutaneous SCC. A preliminary report.

The serum levels of squamous cell carcinoma (SCC)-related antigens (SCC-RAG) were assayed, utilizing the radioimmunoassay kit, in six patients with cutaneous SCC, two patients with Bowen's disease, 18 patients with other benign and malignant dermatoses, and six normal subjects. The SCC-RAG titers were significantly high in three patients with invasive SCC in whom primary tumors were either comparatively large or were associated with metastatic lesions, while they remained within the normal limit in patients with smaller-sized, nonmetastatic SCC, Bowen's disease, other non-SCC dermatoses, and in normal control subjects. The SCC-RAG titers, therefore, provided a useful tumor marker for cutaneous SCC, particularly in advanced stages. In such cases, the values were clearly correlated with tumor behaviors in response to or against treatments and with the development of metastasis.