The reduction of elevated polyamine (PA) levels in biological fluids of cancer patients were known to be correlated with remission
following diverse therapeutic treatments. In this study, altered urinary PA levels from three different cancer cases were
monitored at different intervals during the long-term weekday acupuncture treatments. Nine urinary PA levels from 16 normal
and three cancer patients with different types were measured by gas chromatography–mass spectrometry in selected ion monitoring
mode as
N-ethoxycarbonyl-
N-pentafluoropropionyl derivatives. Their levels measured at three follow-up stages for each patient were then normalized to
the corresponding normal group means and plotted into star symbol patterns. Large alterations of PA levels were observed for
each patient. Each normalized concentration displayed elevation of the PA levels in multiples (0.0–57.7) of the respective
normal mean values. The normalized PA values were transformed into distorted star patterns which were characteristic of each
follow-up stage and of cancer type.
Keywords Cancer - Acupuncture - Urinary polyamines - Ethoxycarbonyl-pentafluoropropionyl derivatives - Gas chromatography–mass spectrometry in selected ion monitoring - Star pattern recognition