Proteomic biomarkers in combination with CA 125 for detection of epithelial ovarian cancer using prediagnostic serum samples from the Prostate, Lung, Colorectal, and Ovarian (PLCO) Cancer Screening Trial

When epithelial ovarian cancer is detected at an early stage (I‐II), the 5‐year survival rate is between 70% and 90%; whereas, when it is detected in late stages (III‐IV), the 5‐year survival rate slips to <30%. In a previous report, the authors observed that proteomic biomarkers and cancer antigen 125 (CA 125) exhibited a sensitivity of 84% at a specificity of 98% for identifying sera from patients who had stage I disease at the time of surgery, significantly improving the sensitivity of CA 125 alone. The challenge, however, is to detect ovarian cancer before clinical diagnosis. The current study was part of a large effort to compare different multimarker biomarker panels for the early detection of ovarian cancer. Several biomarkers were evaluated alone and in combination with CA 125 in prediagnostically collected sera from women in the Prostate, Lung, Colorectal, and Ovarian Cancer Screening Trial.