CRP Levels Identify Risk of Colon Cancer

A study has found that people with higher levels of C-reactive protein (CRP) in their blood (2.44 mg/l) were more likely to develop colorectal cancers than those with low levels (1.94 mg/l). The findings were reported in the February 4, 2004, issue of The Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA).

Researchers studied the records of 22,887 adults, seeking to identify those who developed colon or rectal cancer. They found 172 people who were diagnosed with either colon or rectal cancer, of whom 131 had colon cancer and 41 had rectal cancer. Median CRP levels were higher among people who developed colon cancer (2.69 mg.l) than among those who remained free of disease (1.97 mg/l). In contrast, CRP concentrations were not significantly different between cases of rectal cancer (1.79 mg/l) and the controls (1.81 mg/l). The study also found that the odds of developing colorectal cancers increased progressively with higher concentrations of CRP.

"Higher levels of C-reactive protein are linked to an increased risk of several apparently distinct chronic diseases: heart disease, stroke, diabetes, and now colon cancer,” said lead author Thomas P. Erlinger, M.D., M.P.H., assistant professor of medicine at Johns Hopkins (Baltimore, MD, USA). "However, it's not clear yet how or whether measuring C-reactive protein would fit into current screening and prevention strategies for colorectal cancer.”




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