Tumour Markers & Oncology Labs
Every tumour markers & oncology labs calculator on CalcEngines — unit converters, derived indices and interpretive tools, each with its formula, a worked example and the reference intervals it is judged against.
22 calculators in this section
- Acid Phosphatase Unit ConverterConvert acid phosphatase activity between U/L, IU/L, µkat/L and nkat/L. Total and prostatic acid phosphatase are different measurands with different intervals, and a modern prostatic acid phosphatase reported in ng/mL is an immunoassay that does not convert to U/L at all.
- Alpha-Fetoprotein (AFP) Unit ConverterConvert alpha-fetoprotein between ng/mL, µg/L, pmol/L and WHO IU/mL, with the adult reference limit, the 400 ng/mL hepatocellular carcinoma threshold, and why a normal AFP excludes very little.
- Body Surface Area (BSA) CalculatorCalculate BSA by the Mosteller or Du Bois formula, the basis of most chemotherapy dosing and of eGFR indexing.
- CA 125 Unit ConverterU/mL and kU/L are the same number, so the work on this page is the interpretation: the 35 U/mL convention, the long list of benign causes, and why CA 125 is not a screening test.
- CA 15-3 Unit ConverterU/mL and kU/L are the same number for CA 15-3. The conventional cut-off is about 30 U/mL, and the test is for monitoring known breast cancer — never for diagnosing it.
- CA 19-9 Unit ConverterU/mL and kU/L are the same number for CA 19-9 — and around one person in ten is Lewis-antigen-negative and cannot produce it at all, which makes a normal result uninformative in them.
- CA 72-4 Unit ConverterU/mL and kU/L are the same number for CA 72-4. The interpretation is the work: a gastric and mucinous ovarian marker with a cut-off that belongs to the assay, and a famous false positive from colchicine.
- Calcitonin Unit ConverterConvert calcitonin between pg/mL, ng/L and pmol/L — and read it as what it is: the tumour marker for medullary thyroid carcinoma, with a cut-off that is nearly twice as high in men as in women and a long list of benign reasons to be mildly raised.
- Carcinoembryonic Antigen (CEA) Unit ConverterConvert CEA between ng/mL, µg/L and pmol/L against separate smoker and non-smoker reference limits, and see why CEA is a monitoring test rather than a screening one.
- CYFRA 21-1 Unit Converterng/mL and µg/L are the same number for CYFRA 21-1. A soluble fragment of cytokeratin 19, used for prognosis and monitoring in non-small-cell lung cancer — never to diagnose it.
- Free PSA Unit ConverterConvert free PSA between ng/mL, µg/L and pmol/L — but a free PSA on its own has no interpretation. It means something only as a percentage of the total PSA, so no reference band is shown here.
- Free to Total PSA Ratio CalculatorCalculate the percentage of free PSA, validated in the 4–10 ng/mL diagnostic grey zone to help avoid unnecessary biopsy.
- HE4 (Human Epididymis Protein 4) Unit ConverterHE4 is reported in pmol/L by every assay, so the only conversion on this page is to nmol/L and it is prefix arithmetic. The useful part is what the number is for: HE4 earns its place inside the ROMA index with CA 125 and menopausal status, and its advantage over CA 125 is what it does not rise in.
- Neuron-Specific Enolase (NSE) Unit Converterng/mL and µg/L are the same number for NSE. The point that matters more than the arithmetic is pre-analytical: red cells contain enolase, so a haemolysed sample gives a falsely high result and cannot be interpreted at all.
- ProGRP Unit Converterpg/mL and ng/L are the same number for ProGRP. The small-cell lung cancer marker that haemolysis does not touch — but which renal impairment raises markedly, so the kidney function has to be read alongside it.
- PSA (Total) Unit ConverterConvert total PSA between ng/mL, µg/L and pmol/L, with age-specific limits and an honest account of the 4.0 ng/mL convention — a referral threshold, not a diagnosis.
- PSA Density CalculatorCorrect total PSA for prostate size to separate benign enlargement from a result that warrants biopsy.
- PSA Doubling Time CalculatorEstimate the exponential doubling time between two PSA values, a strong predictor of metastasis after biochemical recurrence.
- PSA Velocity CalculatorCalculate the absolute annual rise in PSA — informative at higher PSA values, though no longer a standalone biopsy trigger.
- ROMA Index Calculator (Ovarian Malignancy Risk)Combine HE4, CA 125 and menopausal status into a single risk estimate that guides referral for an adnexal mass.
- S100B Unit Converterµg/L and ng/mL are the same number for S100B — a melanoma marker that is also used in Scandinavia to avoid a CT scan after mild head injury, with a threshold of 0.10 µg/L within six hours of the injury.
- SCC Antigen Unit Converterng/mL and µg/L are the same number for squamous cell carcinoma antigen. The trap is contamination: the protein is abundant in skin, saliva and sweat, so a contaminated sample reads high with no disease behind it.