Significance of urinary N1,N8-diacetylspermidine and N1,N12-diacetylspermine as indicators of neoplastic diseases.

N1,N8-Diacetylspermidine (Ac2Spd) and N1,N12 diacetylspermine (Ac2Spm), the occurrence of which in healthy human urine was demonstrated recently, increased much more frequently and markedly than total polyamines, acetylputrescine, N1-acetylspermidine and N8-acetylspermidine in patients with urogenital malignancies. Ac2Spd was hardly elevated in cases of benign disease, while Ac2Spm only infrequently stayed within normal limits in patients with malignant disorders. Urine samples from more than 90% of healthy persons, but fewer than 10% of patients with malignancies, gave values within normal limits for both Ac2Spd and Ac2Spm. Simultaneous reference to these diacetylpolyamines is therefore useful in distinguishing patients with malignancies from healthy persons.