Slightly high alpha-fetoprotein for a long time may be related to physiological factors such as staying up all night and pregnancy, as well as pathologic factors such as hepatitis, cirrhosis, hepatocellular carcinoma and testicular cancer.
Alpha-fetoprotein is a glycoprotein of the albumin family, mainly synthesized by fetal hepatocytes and yolk sacs, and its content in the serum after birth is very low, usually less than 25ng/ml, but when there is hepatocellular injury or tumors in embryonic gonads, alpha-fetoprotein in the serum will be elevated.
In patients with acute and chronic hepatitis and cirrhosis, serum alpha-fetoprotein is usually slightly elevated, but usually does not exceed 1000 ng/ml. Physiological factors such as late nights, alcoholism, exertion, and pregnancy can also lead to slightly elevated levels of alpha-fetoprotein, which will gradually recover after lifestyle improvements.
Alpha-fetoprotein is currently used in clinical practice mainly for the diagnosis and efficacy monitoring of primary liver cancer. When primary liver cancer exists, the level of alpha-fetoprotein in the patient’s serum will be significantly elevated.
In addition, malignant tumors of embryonic gonads, such as testicular cancer, ovarian tumor, malignant teratoma, etc., and malignant diseases such as pancreatic cancer, gastric cancer, intestinal cancer, lung cancer, etc., will also lead to elevation of alpha-fetoprotein in serum.
Therefore, if the patient has a slight elevation of alpha-fetoprotein for a long period of time, after excluding physiological factors, it is recommended to consult a doctor in time to find out the cause of the disease and carry out targeted treatment, so as not to delay the condition.