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Biomarkers for Prostate Cancer

Feb 12, 2009

The University of Michigan's Arul Chinnaiyan has led a study that identified several biomarkers for advanced stage prostate cancer, says an article at BBC. The researchers examined 1,126 molecules in a total of 262 samples of tissue, blood, or urine, and found one metabolite, sarcosine, to be a better predictor of late-stage disease than PSA. While a simple urine test is still around five years away, they say, it's promising work. "It raises the possibility of telling the difference between the type of cancer that does no harm -- which we term 'the pussycat' -- from the type that does -- which we call 'the tiger,'" says Malcolm Mason, a cancer expert at the University of Cardiff. "If we are able to distinguish the tiger from the pussycat it could make a real difference."

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