[The measurement of SCC antigen in squamous cell carcinoma of the lung].

Serum squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) antigen levels were measured in 55 patients with lung cancer, 43 with benign diseases and 50 normal subjects. At the same time, carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) was measured for comparison. The mean SCC antigen levels were 1.47 + 0.50 ng/ml in 50 normal subjects. The percentage of positive case for SCC antigen (higher than 2.6 ng/ml) was 27.8% in lung cancer as a whole, 17.6% in adenocarcinoma, 47.6% in squamous cell carcinoma, 6.7% in small cell carcinoma and none in large cell carcinoma. Fifty percent of the Stage II patients were positive for SCC antigen, and the assay might be a possibility for early diagnosis. Our study suggests that SCC antigen assay may be a useful test for the identification and evaluation of lung cancer patients.