Assessment of Bone minerals and Alkaline phosphatase activity in Breast cancer subjects

Breast cancer is a disease condition that is associated with alterations in the body’s physiological homeostasis. Bone metastases are common in advanced cancer and cause considerable morbidity and mortality. The study aimed to assess the serum levels of alkaline phosphatase activity and the bone minerals in breast cancer. A total of 80 subjects within the ages of 20-65 years were investigated (40 breast cancer subjects and 40 age-matched apparently healthy female subjects as controls). Serum calcium was estimated using calcium kit from Randox Laboratories, inorganic phosphate and magnesium were estimated using kits from Biosystems while the estimation of serum alkaline phosphatase activity was done using King Armstrong’s method. The serum total calcium and serum alkaline phosphatase activity were significantly increased (P<0.05) while serum magnesium was significantly decreased (P<0.05) in breast cancer subjects compared with the control subjects. There was no significant increase in serum inorganic phosphate of the breast cancer subjects compared with the control subjects. There was no significant difference in the mean serum levels of the bone minerals and ALP activity between the breast cancer subjects on chemotherapy and those not on chemotherapy. It was concluded that regular laboratory assessment of serum levels of bone minerals and ALP activity should be carried out on breast cancer patients to avoid bone associated disorders