Acid Phosphatase, Total

Acid Phosphatase, Total

Number
	001388
CPT
	84060
Synonyms
	AcP, Total ; Phosphatase, Acid
Test Includes
	Total acid phosphatase only
Specimen
	Serum, frozen
Volume
	1 mL
Minimum Volume
	0.25 mL
Container
	Red-top tube or gel-barrier tube
Collection
	Separate serum from clot promptly after blood collection. To avoid delays in turnaround time when requesting multiple tests on frozen samples, please submit separate frozen specimens for each test requested.
Storage Instructions
	Acid phosphatase at normal serum pH is very labile; therefore, freeze serum immediately to stabilize the enzyme.
Patient Preparation
	This enzyme is subject to circadian rhythms; for follow-up, it should be drawn at the same time of day.
Causes for Rejection
	Hemolysis; icterus; lipemia; blood unprocessed for >1 hour after collection; serum sample not frozen; plasma received
Reference Interval
	0.0-7.3 units/L
Use
	Diagnose carcinoma of prostate, metastatic; monitor therapy with antineoplastic drugs in prostatic cancer; evaluate possible histiocytosis. Moderate elevations of total acid phosphatase have been observed with malignant invasion of bone, myelocytic leukemia, Paget disease (advanced), hyperparathyroidism with skeletal involvement, Gaucher disease, and Niemann-Pick disease. Spurious elevations may occur in hemolytic disease and impaired kidney function.
Limitations
	Elevations in 80% of individuals with metastatic prostate cancer are related to the stage. PAP is not elevated in early stage prostate disease. Currently, PAP has little role in the early detection and management of prostate cancer, having been replaced by the more sensitive PSA test. PAP may have utility in limited cases. A high preoperative PAP in a patient with clinically localized prostate cancer suggests pathologically advanced stage disease, and this patient may not be a good candidate for surgical cure. PAP may also be used to monitor disease in very rare cases where a tumor does not produce PSA.
Methodology
	Spectrophotometry