British scientists have hailed a breakthrough in prostate cancer diagnosis as a “substantial leap forward”.
A revolutionary new test has been developed in the UK that detects the disease in just 15 minutes. The new technique analyses protein structures in dried blood.
This makes it easier to identify the presence of cancer. And scientists say it is accurate in nine out of 10 cases.
Currently, the NHS does not have a screening programme for prostate cancer. This is partly due to an inability to accurately diagnose the cancer with a simple test.
This new test could change that. Its developers – researchers at Aston University in Birmingham – say its is non-invasive and accurate in nine out of 10 cases.
Currently, a protein-specific antigen (PSA) blood test is used. Men with high PSA levels are referred for further tests – such as a biopsy – to diagnose cancer.
However, this very invasive testing – and 25 per cent of cases are positive. And there is also a risk of over-diagnosis, reports The Telegraph.
But the new test is non-invasive and boasts 90 percent accuracy levels, claim the scientists behind the breakthrough. Prof Igor Meglinski, from the university’s Aston Institute of Photonic Technologies, said the test has “immense potential for revolutionising cancer diagnosis”.
“This breakthrough opens new avenues for cancer diagnosis and monitoring, representing a substantial leap forward in personalised medicine and oncology,” he continued. “Prostate cancer accounts for nearly 10 per cent of cancer deaths in men and is one of the leading causes of death in older men.
“However, the life expectancy of 90 per cent of patients diagnosed with prostate cancer at stage 1 or 2 is 15 years or more. By enabling earlier and more accurate detection, our blood test has the potential to significantly improve outcomes and survival rates for many patients.”
Nonetheless, caution is being urged, despite the potential of the new tests. That’s because the results – published in the journal Scientific Reports – are still at a preliminary stage.
Larger clinical trials will be needed to confirm the test’s potential. Dr Matthew Hobbs, director of research at Prostate Cancer UK, who was not involved in the study, said: “Over 10,000 men each year are diagnosed when their cancer has already spread and become incurable, which is why it’s so important that we find new and better tests for prostate cancer.
“The big issue is proving that these tests are better than what we have already. So far, this has been tested on a relatively small number of samples, so we’ll need to see more research before we can know how effective it will be.”
