Body fluid proteins and peptides as tumour markers in clinical cancer research and in monitoring exposure to carcinogens.

A brief review is given of the various groups of peptides and proteins that have been applied as tumour markers in human studies. Special attention is given to markers used for detection of bronchogenic lung tumours. In addition, a review is made of the few published studies on the levels of certain tumour markers in working populations that have been exposed to carcinogens. There is a considerable lack of present knowledge on the applicability of tumour marker assays to monitoring of human exposure to carcinogens. When such studies are planned, it is valuable to combine these analyses with other types of indicators of carcinogen exposure and effects.