COULD C-REACTIVE PROTEIN DETERMINATIONS BE USED TO PREDICT BOWEL CANCER?
(September 2004) C-reactive protein (CRP) can be detected by a blood test. It is raised in any inflammatory process in the body and has been touted in recent years as a predictor of the likelihood of heart attack. Now a study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association in February 2004 argues it is useful in predicting the likelihood of bowel cancer. The investigators followed 22,887 adults for 12 years during which period, 172 cases of bowel cancer occurred. The cancer cases were divided into two groups – 41 involved the lowest part of the bowel (the rectum), 131 were located in the rest of the bowel (the colon). There was no relation of CRP to rectal cancer. On the other hand, CRP levels were higher in those who developed colon cancer. When the participants were divided into four groups (quartiles), the highest quartile, whose CRP levels were clearly elevated, had a 2 and one-half times increased risk of colon cancer. Other statistical calculations showed a very mode
