This study was performed to examine if commonly recorded parameters are of prognostic importance for patients with squamous cell carcinoma of the anal canal. A total of 77 patients received combined chemoradiotherapy and were followed at regular intervals after treatment. Age, sex, performance status, tumour stage, histopathological differentiation and grade, were not found to be of prognostic importance. Most blood tests did not correlate with prognosis, although elevated serum alkaline phosphatase (ALP) and lactate dehydrogenase (LD) proved to be unfavourable prognostic factors. In the present study serum ALP and LD were the only parameters that significantly correlated with development of distant metastases during follow-up.