Salih KARATLI, Özlem GÜL, Üçler KISA, Ercan TEKİN, Bilal ERGÜL
Journal of Current Hematology & Oncology Research - 2026;4(1):1-6
Aims : Cholangiocarcinoma (CC) is a rare form of adenocarcinoma originating from the epithelial cells of the biliary tract. Chronic inflammation is known to be a risk factor for this tumor. The present study aimed to investigate whether serum levels of Maresin 1 (MaR1) (a macrophage-derived anti-inflammatory lipid mediator) were associated with the presence of benign biliary disease (BBD) or CC. Methods : The study was conducted with 104 participants, including 42 patients with CC, 32 patients with BBD, and 30 volunteers without any hepatobiliary pathology. Blood samples were taken from each participant, and serum MaR1 levels were measured with enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay kits. Results : Serum MaR1 levels were significantly lower in the CC and BBD groups compared to controls (p<0.001, for both); however, there was no significant difference between the CC and BBD groups in terms of MaR1 level (p>0.05). The cancer antigen (CA) 19-9 and carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) values of the CC group were found to be significantly higher than the BBD and control groups (p<0.001, for both). Although MaR1 was found to have diagnostic value in differentiating patients with CC or BBD from controls, it had no value in distinguishing CC from BBD; whereas CA19-9 and CEA had significant discriminatory power. Conclusion : Decreased serum MaR1 level may predict inflammation in hepatobiliary pathologies such as CC and BBD; however, it cannot be used to discriminate CC from BBD, and classical cancer markers such as CA19-9 and CEA appear to retain superiority in this respect.
