The ganglioside G as a circulating tumor biomarker for neuroblastoma.

Background: G is a ganglioside that is ubiquitously expressed in the plasma membrane of neuroblastoma and is shed into the circulation.

Procedure: G was measured with a high-pressure liquid chromatography/tandem mass spectrometry assay in serum or plasma from 40 children without cancer (controls) and in biobanked samples from 128 (73 high-risk) children with neuroblastic tumors at diagnosis, 56 children with relapsed neuroblastoma, 14 children with high-risk neuroblastoma after treatment, and 8 to 12 children each with 10 other common childhood cancers at diagnosis.

Results: The C (18 carbon fatty acid) lipoform was the predominant circulating form of G in controls and in patients with neuroblastoma.