Common blood test can 'accurately predict' prostate cancer recurrence
15 years, 9 months ago
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Posted on Jun 25, 2008, 8 p.m.
By Jeanelle Topping
Blood test screening for a number of biomarkers can provide an accurate prediction of future risk of prostate cancer recurrence, new findings suggest.
Blood test screening for a number of biomarkers can provide an accurate prediction of future risk of prostate cancer recurrence, new findings suggest.
A report published in the latest issue of Clinical Cancer Research demonstrated that the presence of seven of these biomarkers can predict prostate cancer risk with 86.6 per cent reliability - a minimum of 15 per cent higher than standard clinical measures currently used.
The results showed that elevated levels of the seven biomarkers were associated with increased risk of relapse in patients surgically treated for prostate cancer.
Dr Shahrokh F Shariat, chief resident in urology at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, said: "We have been looking at these biomarkers for the past ten to 15 years in the laboratory, but now we can translate these findings into progress for the individual patient."
"This is a large and unique improvement for patient care," he added. "Neither preoperative MRI nor any of the clinical features we have used before even comes close to this level of accuracy."
According to the Prostate Cancer Foundation, one in six American men will be diagnosed with the disease.
