ROLE OF INSULIN-LIKE GROWTH FACTOR 1 (IGF-1) AND INSULIN-LIKE GROWTH FACTOR BINDING PROTEIN-3 (IGFBP-3) IN THE DIAGNOSIS OF PANCREATIC ADENOCARCINOMA AND MONITORING TREATMENT RESPONSE

Purpose: Pancreatic cancer occurs rarely in humans, and it is one of the most fatal five cancer types with very poor prognosis. Early diagnosis of pancreatic cancer is difficult due to late presentation of symptoms. The purpose of our study was to evaluate the utility of IGFBP-3 and IGF-1 in early diagnosis of pancreatic cancer and in monitoring treatment response and contribute to the studies conducted in this regard. Methods: The study included 108 subjects, 54 of who were diagnosed with and followed-up for pancreatic cancer and 54 were healthy subjects. The results were compared between the two groups. The study was approved by the Istanbul Faculty of Medicine Ethics Committee. Results: The mean age of the patients included in the study was 54.42 years. IGF-1 levels and IGFBP-3 levels were significantly lower in pancreatic cancer patients than in the control group (respectively p = 0.002, 0.004). There was no difference between IGF-1 and IGFBP-3 levels in patients with distant metastasis (p > 0.05). IGF- 1 levels were significantly higher in patients who responded to chemotherapy than in those who did not respond to chemotherapy (p = 0.03). Conclusions: In our study, we observed that IGF-1 and IGHIP-3 levels can be used for the diagnosis of patients with pancreatic cancer and evaluation of treatment response and prognosis, and there is no significant difference in serum levels according to age, presence of distant metastasis, and gender.