24May 2023 by Ronny Allan No Comments
A spotlight on Chromogranin A

A spotlight on Chromogranin A

A Spotlight on NENs - Testing Series, Patient Advocacy
What is Chromogranin A? Chromogranin A (CgA) is an acidic protein released along with catecholamines from chromaffin cells and nerve terminals. This statement alone might explain why it's a good marker to use with Neuroendocrine Neoplasms.  It is said to be a measure of tumour bulk. Depending on the test kit being used, you may also see test results for Chromogranin B (CgB) alongside CgA. CgB is said to be less affected by false positives and forms a useful adjunct to the more established chromogranin A measurement.  The brand of test kit which includes CgB tends to be confined to Europe. Immunohistochemical Testing.  CgA is one the most commonly used immunohistochemical (IHC) markers for neuroendocrine cells and their tumours.  You may find the mention of CgA in your biopsy reports…
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28Sep 2016 by Ronny Allan 23 Comments
Neuroendocrine Cancer – tumour markers and hormone levels

Neuroendocrine Cancer – tumour markers and hormone levels

Patient Advocacy
BackgroundI think most people have had a form of medical testing at some point in their life, i.e. the sampling and testing of blood, urine, saliva, stool or body tissue. In a nutshell, the medical staff are just measuring the content of a 'substance' and then taking a view whether this is normal or not based on pre-determined ranges. These tests are normally done as a physician's reaction to symptom presentation or maintenance/surveillance of an existing diagnosed condition. Sometimes, abnormal results will lead to more specialist tests.In cancer, these tests are frequently called 'markers'. Most tumour markers are made by normal cells as well as by cancer cells; however, they are produced at much higher levels in cancerous conditions. These substances can be found in the blood, urine, stool, tumour tissue,…
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