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Papers And Short Reports

Prevalence, concentration, and prognostic importance of proteinuria in patients with malignancies

Br Med J (Clin Res Ed) 1988; 296 doi: https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.296.6632.1295 (Published 07 May 1988) Cite this as: Br Med J (Clin Res Ed) 1988;296:1295
  1. Nick Sawyer,
  2. Jane Wadsworth,
  3. Marc Wijnen,
  4. Roger Gabriel

    Abstract

    Protein was found significantly more frequently in single urine samples from 504 patients with malignancy (290; 58%) than in 529 controls (119; 22%) (p<0·001). Median protein concentration was greater (p<0·001) in patients with neoplasia (0·14 g/l) than in controls (0·07 g/l). Actuarial analysis showed a median survival of 4·5 months in patients with proteinuria compared with 10 months in those without (p<0·001). The association between proteinuria and shorter survival was statistically significant for patients with gut tumours, lung tumours, and tumours at other sites analysed as a group. Patients with myeloma or urinary tract tumours were not studied.

    In many patients with malignancy the presence of proteinuria may be associated with a substantially reduced survival time.