Usefulness of Type I Collagen N-Terminal Telopeptide (NTx) in the Diagnosis of Bone Metastasis from Lung Cancer

Objective Although bone metastasis from lung cancer is generally revealed by bone scintigraphy, this diagnostic method has many shortcomings, such as false positive results, high cost, limited availability to certain institutes, flare phenomenon, and difficulty in evaluating therapeutic responses of bone metastatic lesions. In recent years, development of new bone metabolic markers has dramatically advanced. In the present study, we evaluated the usefulness of Type I collagen N-terminal telopeptide (NTx), a metabolite of type I collagen, for the diagnosis of bone metastasis from lung cancer. Methods and Results: The mean urinary NTx level was 112.7±83.9 nM BCE/mM Cr in lung cancer patients with bone metastasis, whereas lung cancer patients without bone metastasis had a significantly lower level (p