Inappropriate treatment of women with persistent low hCG results is common.

2004 SEP 2 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- According to the USA hCG Reference Service, University of New Mexico, women with persistent low human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) levels, particularly quiescent gestational trophoblastic disease, continue to be "needlessly treated."

"The USA hCG Reference Service is a consulting service with a specialized clinical laboratory aiding physicians in the interpretation of conflicting or nonrepresentative human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) results," explained L.A. Cole and colleagues.

"We have consulted on 189 cases with persistent low levels of hCG but no evidence of pregnancy or tumor. Quiescent gestational trophoblastic disease (GTD) was identified in 121 cases by the absence of invasive trophoblast antigen and nonresponse to chemotherapy (64 cases with a history of hydatidiform mole or gestational trophoblastic neoplasia (GTN) and 57 cases following antecedent pregnancy).

"Another 61 Reference Service cases had false positive hCG, and we observed 7 cases with low levels of hCG of pituitary origin (hCG subsequently suppressed by estrogen-progesterone medication)," Cole and coworkers said.

"Most disturbing is that the majority of these cases (68%) received needless therapy for assumed GTN/choriocarcinoma/placental site trophoblastic tumor before consultation with the Reference Service," the authors reported.

"One hundred twenty-eight of the 189 patients (77 of 121 with quiescent GTD, 48 of 61 with false positive hCG, and 3 of 7 with pituitary hCG) underwent therapy ranging from ...