Method could facilitate commercially available, at-home urine tests
Early screening for prostate cancer could become as easy for men as personal pregnancy testing is for women, thanks to UC Irvine research published today in the Journal of the American Chemical Society.
After more than a decade of work, UC Irvine chemists have created a way to clearly identify clinically usable markers for prostate cancer in urine, meaning that the disease could be detected far sooner, with greater accuracy and at dramatically lower cost. The same technology could potentially be used for bladder and multiple myeloma cancers, which also shed identifiable markers in urine.
“Our goal is a device the size of a home pregnancy test priced around $10. You would buy it at the drugstore or the grocery store and test yourself,” said the study’s corresponding author, Reginald Penner, UC Irvine Chancellor’s Professor of chemistry. “We’re on the verge of a very important breakthrough in a new era of personal health management.”
About 240,000 men in the U.S. are diagnosed with prostate cancer each year, and 29,000 are expected to die of it in 2013. But current, widely utilized testing does not always catch the disease in its early stages, often yields false positives and can lead to unnecessary, risky treatments.
A recent report concluded that the prostate-specific antigen, or PSA, test can be more harmful than beneficial, although it remains important for detecting recurring prostate cancer. The UC Irvine researchers used a different biomarker, PSMA, and plan to test others to pinpoint if a cancer is growing aggressively or not.
“A big problem is that the approach used now does not catch cancer soon enough,” said co-author Gregory Weiss, a UC Irvine biochemist. “We want this to be a disruptive technology that will change how we save lives and that will bring down healthcare costs drastically.”
The researchers used a combination of readily available chemicals and unique electronic sensors to create the screening process.
Salt in urine helps conduct electricity but also makes it challenging for typical biosensors to differentiate the “signals” of cancer molecules from “noise” around them in the electrodes. The UC Irvine team developed a new type of sensor: They added nanoscale protein receptors to tiny, pencil-like viruses called phages that live only within bacteria. Double wrapping the phages with additional receptors greatly increases the capture and transmission of cancer molecule signals.
“We add a high concentration of the viruses, and they get trapped directly in the electrode. We’re jamming the signal with the cancer marker, and it stays on louder than all the other material,” said lead author Kritika Mohan, a graduate student with Weiss’ lab. “To our surprise, it works really well in the ingredients that make up urine.”
The next step is human clinical trials, which the researchers hope can be conducted fairly quickly since the testing will be noninvasive. The method has been patented and licensed, and a commercial partner has been identified.
The Latest Bing News on:
Prostate cancer
- The Prostate Health Index aids multi-parametric MRI in diagnosing significant prostate canceron March 5, 2021 at 2:58 am
To evaluate the performance of the Prostate Health Index (PHI) in magnetic resonance imaging-transrectal ultrasound (MRI-TRUS) fusion prostate biopsy for the detection of clinically significant ...
- Prostate Cancer Treatment Market Is Estimated To Grow With A CAGR of 8.5% from 2020-2026on March 5, 2021 at 2:37 am
A recent report provides crucial insights along with application based and forecast information in the Global Castrate-resistant Prostate Cancer Treatment Market. The report provides a comprehensive ...
- Prostate cancer patient did not know doctor had financial link to new private treatment that he 'strongly recommended' to him, tribunal hearson March 4, 2021 at 11:07 am
Consultant urologist Paul Miller, 62, is accused of being 'financially motivated' when he referred eight patients to undergo high intensity focused ultrasound (Hifu) in Horley, Surrey.
- Global Prostate Cancer Devices Market 2020 Industry Challenges, Top Manufacturers, Key Countries with Forecast to 2025on March 4, 2021 at 1:56 am
A new offering by MarketsandResearch.biz entitled Global Prostate Cancer Devices Market 2020 by Manufacturers, Regions, Type and Application, Forecast to 2026 documents an overview of the market which ...
- Dr. David Samadi's book, The Ultimate MANual, on what men should not believe about prostate canceron March 3, 2021 at 10:17 am
Dr. David Samadi, world-renowned prostate cancer surgeon and Director of Men's Health and Urologic Oncology at St. Francis Hospital in Roslyn, New York, has a new book all about men's health and ...
- $1m grant funds research on potential new RX for prostate canceron March 3, 2021 at 8:19 am
The Biomedical Laboratory Research and Development Branch of the Veterans Administration (VA) has awarded Hari Koul, PhD, Professor and Interim Chairman of the Department Biochemistry & Molecular ...
- Case Comprehensive Cancer Center receives $2.75 million to increase prostate cancer screening in Black menon March 2, 2021 at 11:23 am
The Bristol Myers Squibb Foundation has awarded $2.75 million to researchers at the Case Comprehensive Cancer Center at Case Western Reserve University who will collaborate with a team of community ...
- New initiative aims to increase prostate cancer screening in African Americans menon March 1, 2021 at 1:06 pm
African American men in Cuyahoga County have a 60% increased risk of being diagnosed with prostate cancer and an 80% increased risk of dying from prostate cancer compared to white men, according to ...
- My prostate cancer journey: Testosterone reduction, mini-radiation treatments, embedded radioactive seeds and lots of difficult side effectson February 26, 2021 at 3:49 pm
The year-long treatment’s effects made many things harder. And those seeds mean I might set off radiation detectors at borders and I can’t let my grandkids sit on my lap.
- UCSD Researchers Find Genetic Tool To Predict Prostate Canceron February 23, 2021 at 10:49 am
The UCSD-led team validated a more inclusive and comprehensive genetic tool for predicting age of onset of aggressive prostate cancer.
The Latest Google Headlines on:
Prostate cancer
The Latest Bing News on:
Prostate cancer detection
- The Prostate Health Index aids multi-parametric MRI in diagnosing significant prostate canceron March 5, 2021 at 2:58 am
To evaluate the performance of the Prostate Health Index (PHI) in magnetic resonance imaging-transrectal ultrasound (MRI-TRUS) fusion prostate biopsy for the detection of clinically significant ...
- A monolithic single-chip point-of-care platform for metabolomic prostate cancer detectionon March 5, 2021 at 1:51 am
With prostate cancer, the absence of a reliable test has inhibited the adoption of screening programs. We report a microelectronic point-of-care metabolite biomarker measurement platform and use it ...
- Cancer May Become Leading Cause of Death in Nigeria Without Early Detectionon March 3, 2021 at 9:48 pm
Nigeria has one of the highest burdens of cancer cases in Africa. In 2020, an estimated 124,000 new cases of cancer were diagnosed while 78,0000 deaths from cancer were recorded (Globocan). The most ...
- Dr. David Samadi's book, The Ultimate MANual, on what men should not believe about prostate canceron March 3, 2021 at 10:26 am
Learn about Prostate cancer with treatments available. Improve your sex life, testosterone, nutrition all in my book "I'm passionate about men's health and especially prostate cancer," says Dr. Samadi ...
- Case Comprehensive Cancer Center receives $2.75 million to increase prostate cancer screening in Black menon March 2, 2021 at 11:23 am
The Bristol Myers Squibb Foundation has awarded $2.75 million to researchers at the Case Comprehensive Cancer Center at Case Western Reserve University who will collaborate with a team of community ...
- Researchers to lead Northeast Ohio initiative to increase prostate cancer screening in African American menon March 1, 2021 at 5:41 pm
African American men in Cuyahoga County have a 60% increased risk of being diagnosed with prostate cancer and an 80% increased risk of dying from ...
- New initiative aims to increase prostate cancer screening in African Americans menon March 1, 2021 at 1:06 pm
African American men in Cuyahoga County have a 60% increased risk of being diagnosed with prostate cancer and an 80% increased risk of dying from prostate cancer compared to white men, according to ...
- My prostate cancer journey: Testosterone reduction, mini-radiation treatments, embedded radioactive seeds and lots of difficult side effectson February 26, 2021 at 3:49 pm
The year-long treatment’s effects made many things harder. And those seeds mean I might set off radiation detectors at borders and I can’t let my grandkids sit on my lap.
- The Game Changer: New Test Helps Doctors Find Hidden Prostate Canceron February 25, 2021 at 11:38 pm
New technology is making it easier for doctors to detect prostate cancer in men and could prove to be an effective treatment for the disease.
- Dogs Can Sniff Out Lethal Prostate Cancer With High Accuracy, Suggests First Blind Studyon February 24, 2021 at 7:13 am
If you own a dog, you already know they are masters of sniffing rears. Despite wielding powerful noses that can detect diabetes and even COVID-19, they oft ...