Evaluation of phosphohexose isomerase as a metastasis marker in breast cancer patients.

In this study the value of PHI serum measurements in breast cancer as an index of metastases was investigated. Serum CA 15-3 and CEA tumor marker and gamma-glutamyltranspeptidase (gamma-GT) levels were also determined in groups of patients with established distant metastases or in patients on follow-up with no evidence of disease. Fifty-one female breast cancer patients were included in the study. The mean values for each parameter were higher when metastases were present. However, the difference was mostly not meaningful. The only significant difference was observed for CA 15-3. Our data do not support the usefulness of the PHI assay for early detection of the metastases in breast cancer.