Résumé
The aim of this study was to compare carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) and CA 19-9 for the detection of local recurrences and distant metastases after complete resection of gastric carcinoma. At least one postoperative measurement of CEA and CA 19-9 was performed in 54 patients. Among these, 32 had recurrence (59 %) with a median follow-up of 618 days. Significantly higher sensitivity was observed for CA19-9 in comparison with CEA (68.8 % vs 38.2 % respectively), but specificity was slightly lower (81.8 % vs 95.6 % respectively). Increased CEA plasma level never preceeded the diagnosis of recurrence while increasing CA19-9 preceeded diagnosis in 13 patients (40.6 %) from 1 to 22 months (median = 4.5 months). Increasing the normal range of CA19-9 to 80 UI/mL (2.5 x N) raises the specificity to 100 % with acceptable sensitivity (53.1 %). This study shows that CA19-9, compare with CEA, allows diagnosis of recurrence more often and earlier in the follow-up of resected gastric cancer.