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MUC-18 associated with advanced stage in patients with melanoma

The expression of melanoma-associated mRNAs (MAMs) in the peripheral blood and their association with early and/or advanced stages of the disease were evaluated in 100 patients with melanoma. Results from the multimarker RT-PCR assay revealed that MAMs expression was present in 24 cases. The most common markers found in blood were Tyr-OH (14%), MUC-18 (12%), MART-1 (5%), MAGE-3 (4%) and p97 (3%). In addition, the investigators determined that only MUC-18 statistically correlated with advanced stages of melanoma, and that the presence of MUC-18 increased the odds of being in advanced stages and recurrences of the disease by 33 (Rapanotti, M.C. et al. Br J Dermatol 2009, 160[2]: 338).