Thursday, September 1, 2011

MoNews 8/1/11

New test for prostate cancer works independently of PSA concentration
- A new, urine-based screening test known as the PSA/SIA assay may be more sensitive than traditional methods in detecting prostate cancer.
- the prostate-specific antigen/solvent interaction analysis (PSA/SIA) test is described as a novel prostate cancer assay that focuses on changes to the structure of PSA.
- “This test provides a new way to look at prostate cancer diagnosis utilizing a novel biological assay which differentiates PSA molecular structures arising from cancer versus noncancerous glands,” affirmed Mark Stovsky, MD, principal investigator and lead author of the study.
- the accuracy of traditional PSA testing is limited by both relatively high false-positive rates of approximately 55% to 75% and false-negative rates of up to 15%. False positives lead to unnecessary biopsies and worry on the part of patients, whereas false negatives cause clinicians to miss cancer in men with “normal” PSA values.
- Rather than attempting to find a single genetic biomarker (PSA) that predicts the presence of prostate cancer, the PSA/SIA assay works by separating PSA protein structures on the basis of being linked to either a “cancer” or a “noncancer” pathologic diagnosis based on ultrasound-guided biopsy.
- “In this preliminary study, analysis of the overall structurally heterogenous PSA isoform population using the SIA assay showed promising results to be further evaluated in future studies,” concluded the investigators.
 
 

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