Serum Haptoglobin Type in Females With Genital Cancer 1 y,,

SUMMARY-The distribution of haptoglobin types was studied in 291 females with genital cancer and in 1 70 females with precancerous or benign changes of endometrium. The frequency of haptoglobin types in neither group differed From normal values. No aberrations in frequency of haptoglobin types depending on site or type of cancer were observed. The distribution of haptoglobin types in our patients showed no correlation with other genetically determined characters (blood group ABO, Rh/Hr genotype, or serum group Gm) studied simultaneously with haptoglobins in our series.-J Nat Cancer Inst 42: 749-752, 1969. SERUM HAPTOGLOBINS are proteins with special affinity for hemoglobin. The types of human haptoglobins result from the combination of two codominant genes, Hpl and Hp2. In Prague, the haptoglobin types studied in a repre-sentative sample of 662 persons occurred in the following percentage: Hp 2-1 type in 47.73; Hp 2-2 in 35.19; Hp 1-1 in 17.08. The frequency of Hpl gene was 0.4093 and that of Hp2 was 0.5907. The difference between actual and theoretical values was insignificant: x2 = 0.09159; 0.98<P<0.95 (1). Also, there was a small percentage of ahaptoglobinemias in normal population originated by the rare gene Hpo. Recendy, Larkin (2) reported on a signifi-candy lowered frequency of Hpl gene in 53 patients with cancer of the cervix, uterus, or ovary as compared to normal population, the frequency being 0.264 in cancer and 0.388 in normal population. 332-482--!69---110 The present study was carried out to determine the haptoglobin type in patients with each of these genital cancers and in controls with pre-cancerous and benign diseases of the endometrium. In all series the frequency of haptoglobin type was studied in individuals divided according to the blood group ABO, RhjHr genotype, and serum group Gm, as well as in subjects with normal or elevated level of fifth fraction of serum lactic dehydrogenase. The possible correlation of haptoglobin type, not only to genital cancer of a certain site but also to some other genetically determined character in cancer patients, was investigated