The aim of the present study was to assess serum levels of
copper and
zinc levels and erythrocytes Cu,Zn-SOD activity and to determine probable changes in gastric and colorectal precancerous diseases, benign
breast diseases, gastric, colorectal and
breast cancer. The study included 165 subjects with
cancer, 348 subjects with precancerous (
atrophic gastritis, gastric
adenoma, colon
adenoma, rectal
adenoma) and/or benign diseases (weak dysplasia, severe dysplasia,
fibroadenoma, cystic disease) and 161 randomly selected healthy controls. Our results suggest that while in gastric and
colorectal cancer there were mostly increased
copper levels, in
breast cancer they were not changed.
Zinc levels were weakly decreased in
atrophic gastritis, gastric
adenoma and
breast cancer. There was a strong positive correlation between
zinc levels and SOD activity in
fibroadenoma and a weak positive correlation in colorectal
adenoma and
colorectal cancer without any correlation between SOD activity and
copper in these groups. In gastric precancerous disease there was a positive correlation between SOD and
copper. The results of this study suggest that serum
trace element levels and activity of related
enzymes might be different in various
neoplastic processes. This variation in
neoplastic processes might be influenced by other factors that have to be considered in complex relationships between the whole body and neoplastic cells.