Human chorionic gonadotropin, hCG, normally appears in serum and urine during pregnancy, when the placenta produces the hormone. The presence of hCG triggers the continuing release of progesterone from the corpus luteum, the remnant of the follicle that contained the ovulated egg. Beta hCG is one of two subunits; the other is alpha. Beta hCG can also show up in the blood and urine if you have certain cancers, including liver cancer.
Liver Cancer Types
Liver cancer in children can cause a rise in beta hCG. Adults with liver cancer can also have elevated beta hCG, although elevations in hCG are more likely to occur in other types of cancer. Liver cancer occurs more frequently in men than women; in 2010, around 17,430 new cases will develop in men and 6,690 in women, according to the American Cancer Society. Over 90 percent of people with liver cancer are over age 45.
Significance of hCG
Human chorionic gonadotropin is known as a tumor marker for certain types of cancer. The tumor cells or tissues of the organ produce the hormone. In men and children, where pregnancy obviously cannot cause the rise in hCG, tumor markers indicate a need to look further for the source of the hormone. Beta hCG elevation is not specific for liver cancer. Many other cancers, including choriocarcinoma --- a type of cancer that arises from placental tissue after pregnancy and testicular cancer --- also cause an elevated hCG level. Beta hCG levels may also rise in stomach, pancreatic and lung cancers.
Controversies
Some medical practitioners feel that hCG levels always rise in the presence of cancer and that monitoring levels can indicate whether or not a tumor is growing far before the tumor manifests in other ways. The Navarro Medical Clinic of Manila states that some cancers can be detected in urinary hCG up to two or more years before symptoms appear. This has not been proven, however.
Advantages
The advantage of tumor markers like beta hCG in cancer is the ability to do serial measurements that can measure the success of treatment. Tumor markers can also show whether or not a cancer returns after going into remission.
References
- Stanford Medicine Cancer Center: Cancer Diagnosis
- The University of Chicago Medical Center: Childhood Liver Cancer Treatment
- "National Cancer Institute"; Tumor Markers: Questions and Answers; February 2006
- Rethinking Cancer: HCG Test --- A Non-Invasive Diagnostic for Cancer
- American Cancer Society: Liver Cancer
