Evaluation of biomarkers, genetic mutations, and epigenetic modifications in early diagnosis of pancreatic cancer

Table 1 Characteristics and clinical presentations of cases in the present study, n (%)

Patient characteristics	Cases, n = 50	P value
Age in yr
≤ 50	28 (56.0)	0.0377
> 50	22 (44.0)
Gender
Male	29 (58.0)	0.031
Female	21 (42.0)
Family history
Smoker
Yes	22 (44.0)	0.034
No	28 (56.0)
Lifestyle
Active	44 (88.0)	0.001
Sedentary	06 (12.0)
Residence
Rural	40 (80.0)	0.01
Urban	10 (20.0)
Dietary habits
Salt tea
Yes	47 (94.0)	0.01
No	03 (06.0)
Spicy food
Yes	28 (56.0)	0.043
No	22 (44.0)
Appetite
Yes	25 (50.0)	0.05
No	25 (50.0)
Vegetables
Yes	48 (100.0)	0.001
No	02 (00.0)
Non-veg.
Yes	47 (100.0)	0.001
No	03 (00.0)
Edible oil
Saturated	43 (86.0)	0.01
Unsaturated	07 (17.0)
Urine habits
Normal	28 (56.0)	0.05
Disturbed	22 (44.0)
Bowel habits
Normal	30 (60.0)	0.05
Disturbed	20 (40.0)

Table 2 Analysis of tumor biological marker in the serum of pancreatic cancer patients

Tumor marker	Normal level	PC patients with elevated levels of tumor markers	PC patients with normal levels of tumor markers	P value for PC patients with elevated levels vs normal levels
CA19-9	< 37 U/mL	33	17	0.05
TPS	< 80 U/L	32	18	0.05
CEA	< 5 ng/mL	48	02	0.003
VEGF-A	31.2-2000 pg/mL	48	02	0.003
EGFR	62.5-4000 pg/mL	0	50	0.001

PC: Pancreatic cancer; CA19-9: Carbohydrate antigen 19-9; TPS: Tissue polypeptide specific antigen; CEA: Carcinoembryonic antigen; VEGF-A: Vascular endothelial growth factor-A; EGFR: Epidermal growth factor receptor.

Table 3 Mutational analysis of KRAS (Codon 12 and 13), DPC-4, and BRCA-2 gene mutations within pancreatic cancer subjects

Key genes in PC patients evaluated for mutational analysis	Mutation’s present	Mutation’s absent	P value for mutations present vs absent
KRAS mutation (codon 12)	16	34	0.05
KRAS mutation (codon 13)	12	38	0.05
DPC-4 mutation (1203G>T)	0	50	0.001
BRCA-2 mutation (6174delT)	0	50	0.001

KRAS: Kirsten rat sarcoma; DPC-4: Deleted in pancreatic cancer-4; BRCA-2: Breast cancer type 2.

Table 4 Methylation and unmethylation status in the promoter region of p16, RASSF1A, and hMLH1within pancreatic cancer subjects

Genes	Promoter methylation analysis status	Promoter unmethylation analysis status	P value for promoter methylation vs ummethylation
p16	21	29	0.05
RASSF1A	0	50	0.001
hMLH1	4	46	0.165