The importance of serum calprotectin level in patients with lymphoma

BACKGROUND: Calprotectin is a protein found in the cytoplasm of neutrophils and monocytes and its serum level increases in inflammatory conditions and some cancer cases. It was aimed to determine the diagnostic and prognostic importance of serum calprotectin levels in patients with lymphoma in this study. MATERIALS AND METHODS: In this study, 32 newly diagnosed or relapsed Hodgkin lymphoma (HL), 31 diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL), and 26 healthy cases followed in the Hematology clinic of Atatürk University Medical Faculty Hospital were evaluated prospectively. Serum calprotectin levels of lymphoma cases and control groups were compared. In addition, the relationship between serum calprotectin level and bulky mass, B symptoms, Ann Arbor stage, extranodal involvement, and response to chemotherapy was investigated in lymphoma groups. RESULTS: Serum calprotectin level was higher in the HL than that in the DLBCL and control groups (P = 0.01, P = 0.001, respectively). There was a correlation between serum calprotectin level and bulky mass, B symptoms, and Ann Arbor stage (P = 0.03, P = 0.02, and P = 0.001, respectively) in the HL group. Serum calprotectin level and international prognostic score were associated in the DLBCL group (P = 0.001). CONCLUSION: Serum calprotectin level can be used as an additional diagnostic biomarker in HL. In addition, it is associated with some prognostic biomarkers in lymphoma cases.