Serum alpha-fetoprotein in chronic liver disease.

The serum alpha-fetoprotein level was measured by radioimmunoassay in 20 normal subjects and in 118 patients with chronic liver disease. The highest concentrations were found in the group of hepatocellular carcinoma. Compared with the controls, higher values were demonstrable in the other groups of liver disease as well. This is attributed to the more or less marked regeneration of liver tissue, which is never absent in any type of liver disease studied, and in the case of fatty degeneration, to the alpha-fetoprotein inducing effect of alcohol. The importance of alpha-fetoprotein estimation in the diagnosis of hepatocellular carcinoma and monitoring of its therapy, as also in the assessment of activity and regeneration in other forms of chronic liver disease, are pointed out. Countercurrent electrophoresis has been found unreliable for the measurement of alpha-fetoprotein.