METASTATIC BRAIN-TUMOR AND FIBRINOPEPTIDES

Tumour growth essentially requires fibrin formation and fibrinopeptide A (FPA) is liberated into the circulation on fibrin formation. In the present study, a possible elevation of serum FPA level was examined in patients with metastatic brain tumour. A significant elevation of serum FPA level was shown in all 6 patients with metastatic brain tumour, when blood was drawn from the internal jugular vein. It was extremely high in 2 patients with rapidly growing tumour. However, such a significant elevation was not shown in 3 cancer patients without brain metastasis or in 1 patient with a huge meningioma. This suggests the possibility that the presence of metastatic brain tumour could be detected by measuring FPA in blood drawn from the internal jugular vein. This also suggests the tendency that elevation of serum FPA is higher in patients with more rapidly growing tumour. Infusion of urokinase into the internal carotid artery resulted in an elevation of serum fibrinopeptide B .beta. (1) 15-42 (FPB .beta.) in 5 patients with metastatic brain tumour, when blood was drawn from the internal jugular vein. This suggests that urokinase could induce fibrinolysis in the tumour tissue, though this remains inconclusive because of the lack of complete controls.