Prostate cancer could be detected early by urine test

By Stephen Beech

Prostate cancer could be detected early by a simple urine test, according to new research.

The breakthrough could potentially save thousands of lives as it is the most common cancer among men.

Prostate cancer claims the lives of more than 12,000 men in the UK every year, while latest figures show that one in eight will be diagnosed with it in their lifetime.

Now, a new study, published in the journal Cancer Research, indicates that the potential killer can be diagnosed at an early stage through a urine sample.

With the aid of AI and extensive analyses of gene activity in tumor, researchers have identified new biomarkers of "high diagnostic precision."

One of the main hurdles in diagnosing prostate cancer is the lack of exact biomarkers able to identify the presence of an early tumor.

Researchers at Imperial College London, the Karolinska Institute in Sweden, and the China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences have identified new, precise biomarkers.

On analysing the mRNA activity of all human genes in thousands of individual cells in prostate tumors, and knowing the position and degree of cancer of each cell, the research team was able to construct digital models of prostate cancer.

The models were analysed, using AI, to find proteins that can be used as biomarkers.

The biomarkers were then analysed in the blood, prostate tissue and urine of almost 2,000 patients.

Researchers identified a set of biomarkers in urine that were able to indicate the presence and severity of prostate cancer with a "high degree" of precision.

According to their calculations, they surpass PSA, the blood biomarker in current clinical use.

Principal investigator Professor Mikael Benson, of the Karolinska Institute, said: “There are many advantages to measuring biomarkers in urine.

“It’s non-invasive and painless and can potentially be done at home.

"The sample can then be analysed using routine methods in clinical labs.”

Large-scale clinical trials are being planned for the next phase of the research.

One such is being discussed with study co-author Professor Rakesh Heer, of Imperial College.

Heer is head of Transform, the UK’s national prostate cancer study, which offers a platform for expediting the testing of promising biomarkers.

Benson added: “New, more precise biomarkers than PSA can lead to earlier diagnosis and better prognoses for men with prostate cancer.

“Moreover, it can reduce the number of unnecessary prostate biopsies in healthy men.”