U-M researchers discover traits of aggressive form of prost...(ology and S.P. Hicks Endowed Professor o...),Health

An estimated 186,320 new cases of prostate cancer will be diagnosed this year, according to the National Cancer Institute, and more than 28,000 men will die from the disease this year. More than 70 percent of men diagnosed with prostate cancer are older than 65.

Current tests for prostate cancer include prostate-specific antigen (PSA) blood tests. Increased levels of PSA can indicate that prostate cancer is present. Another test is a digital rectal examination, which can detect abnormalities in the prostate. Another urine-based test screens for PCA3 as a specific biomarker of prostate cancer.

Background: In 2005, Chinnaiyan and his team made the landmark discovery that in prostate cancer, pieces of two chromosomes trade places with each other. This switch, or translocation, causes two unrelated genes to be placed next to each other and fuse together. The abnormal gene fusion associated with prostate cancer occurs when one of two genes, ERG or ETV1, merges with a prostate-specific gene called TMPRSS2.

Before this discovery, it was thought that gene fusions only occurred in blood cancers, such as leukemias and lymphomas, but not in common solid tumors such as prostate cancer. Chinnaiyan's discovery demonstrated that these gene fusions could be found in solid tumors and has opened an entire field of research. This discovery may lead to better diagnostic tests and new treatments for prostate cancer.

Earlier this year, Chinnaiyan's team published a study about a urine test that more accurately detects prostate cancer than any other screening method currently in use. They built on the PCA3 test by screening for six additional biomarkers and some molecules. In their research, the team accurately identified 80 percent of patients who were later found to have prostate cancer, and they were 61 percent effective in ruling out disease in other study parti
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