Circulating intercellular adhesion molecule 1 predicts non-specific elevation of α1-fetoprotein.

Molecules governing cellular interactions have been suggested to be involved in the spurious elevation of α1-fetoprotein (AFP) in non-neoplastic liver disease. To explore this controversial issue, we measured AFP, circulating intercellular adhesion molecule 1 (cICAM-1), and common liver function tests in 111 patients (71 male, 40 female). Eighty-four patients had non-neoplastic chronic liver disease and 27 had hepatocellular carcinoma. The concentration of cICAM-1 was determined immunoenzymatically. In patients with non-neoplastic chronic liver disease, univariate analysis demonstrated a significant correlation between AFP and cholinesterase ( R=−0.397, P<0.001), aspartate aminotransferase ( R=0.421, P<0.001), bilirubin ( R=0.231, P<0.05) and cICAM-1 ( R=0.430, P<0.001). Multivariate analysis among these variables and AFP indicated cICAM-1 to be the strongest independent predictor of AFP. We conclude that cICAM-1 compares favourably with liver function tests in predicting non-specific AFP variations in non-neoplastic chronic liver disease, suggesting a link between targeting of the inflammatory damage to the hepatocyte and development of neoplasia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]