The Significance of Detecting Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor in Differentiating Tuberculosis Pleural Effusion from Malignant Pleural Effusions

Objective To explore the significance of detecting vascular endothelial growth factor(VEGF) in differentiating between benign and malignant disease.Methods VEGF in the serum and pleural effusion was detected by ELISA method in 26 cases with malignant pleural effusion and 18 cases with tuberculosis pleural effusion.Results VEGF levels in the serum and pleural effusion were significantly higher in patients with malignant pleural effusion than in patients with tuberculosis pleural effusion(787.3±82.9 and 3 390.9±468.5 vs.324.1±84.2 and 1 058.1±137.8 pg/ml,P0.01).The ratio of VEGF in serum to that in pleural effusion was significantly different between malignant pleural effusion and tuberculosis pleural effusion(P0.05).The specificity and sensitivity of combinative detecting VEGF in serum and pleural effusion were 94.4% and 65.4% for malignant pleural effusion.Conclusion The detection of VEGF in serum and pleural effusion may play an role in differentiating between benign and malignant pleural effusion.