ALB and cancer: As a major component isolated from human serum, albumin (ALB) not only reflects the nutritional status of the body but also plays a critical role in the inflammatory response.3Previous studies demonstrated that the ALB level in serum could independently predict survival levels in several types of malignancies, such as colorectal cancer, breast cancer, ovarian cancer, gastric cancer and lung cancer.4, 5, 6 The levels of the hydrolase enzyme alkaline phosphatase (ALP) increase in cancer patients in association with bone metastasis; hence, ALP was used to screen patients for bone metastasis.