New prostate cancer test detects more dangerous tumours than standard PSA screening, study finds

A new test may be more effective at detecting dangerous prostate cancer than current screening methods, a study suggests.

Researchers in Sweden say a tool known as Stockholm3 finds 90 per cent of ‘clinically significant’ prostate cancers, compared to 74 per cent of the standard prostate specific antigen (PSA) test.

The PSA test, which measures levels of a protein produced by the prostate gland, is currently the main method used to assess a man’s risk of prostate cancer.

Although high PSA levels can be a symptom of disease, they can also be caused by other conditions; This is prompting researchers to look for more accurate ways to identify men at risk, avoiding unnecessary screenings and biopsies.

Prostate cancer is the most common form of the disease among men in the UK; It affects approximately one in eight adults and is linked to approximately 63,000 new cases and 12,000 deaths each year.

Men who want to protect themselves can seek a PSA test from a GP, but the effectiveness of screening has long been debated by critics because it can produce false positive results and miss some aggressive tumours.

Now researchers from the Karoline Institute in Stockholm believe Stockholm3 could be a potential answer.

The new test combines PSA measurements with genetic markers linked to high prostate cancer risk, as well as relevant proteins in the blood, and factors such as age, family history and previous biopsy results.

It then creates a risk score that estimates a man’s likelihood of developing clinically significant prostate cancer; this is defined in the study as anything above grade two disease.

Second-degree cancers, although still slow-growing, are considered potentially harmful and are more likely to need treatment than first-degree tumors.

The study included 12,670 men aged 50 to 74, with an average age of 62, who underwent both PSA and Stockholm3 testing.

Of those screened, 443 were diagnosed with clinically significant prostate cancer.

Researchers found that Stockholm3 improved standard PSA testing by reducing the number of serious tumors missed and also reducing the amount of unnecessary biopsies.

Over a two-year follow-up period, the new test missed only 10 percent of clinically significant cancers, compared with 26 percent for PSA screening. The false positive rate was similar for both tests.

Stockholm3 also correctly identified nine out of 10 clinically significant cancers; For the PSA test, this rate was around three quarters.

The authors wrote: ‘In this screening cohort with short-term follow-up, Stockholm3 provided greater clinical net benefit than PSA in detecting (clinically significant prostate cancer) with fewer false-negative results, although follow-up was limited to 2 years.’

They add that the findings suggest that the Stockholm3 test may be more accurate than the standard PSA test and may reduce the need for unnecessary procedures.

Because PSA levels can also rise for reasons other than prostate cancer, such as infection and advancing age, critics say the PSA blood test can falsely reassure a person that they do not have cancer, leading to unnecessary scans and biopsies when levels rise for reasons other than cancer.

The researchers acknowledged the limitations of their new study, including that only a quarter of the men invited to the screening study chose to participate.

However, they believe their findings warrant further examination, adding: ‘Further research involving long-term follow-up of survival and cause-specific mortality will be needed to assess the long-term impact and cost-effectiveness of this screening approach.

‘If confirmed, integrating Stockholm3 into screening pathways could increase the effectiveness and clinical benefit of prostate cancer screening programmes.’

This comes just weeks after a new study suggested an alternative approach to prostate cancer testing using MRI scans. may be more effectiveCurrent screening methods used by the NHS.

Under the proposed approach, men who test positive for PSA would be offered an MRI before any biopsy is performed. Experts say this step will allow doctors to act on lower PSA levels and detect cancers earlier.

Rather than screening all men once they reach a certain age, the panel recommended a more personalized approach based on risk.

Men at low risk for the disease are offered an MRI every four to five years, while those at higher risk, such as black men and those with a genetic predisposition, need to be screened more frequently.

Biopsies, which are painful and can lead to sexual problems, should only be performed when MRI scans read by highly trained doctors clearly flag suspicious results.

This stricter, more personalized approach could cut biopsies in half and detect the same amount of cancer, the panel said.

Earlier this month government advisers rejected calls for a nationwide prostate cancer screening programme. although it has been explained All black men in the UK will be invited to join Prostate cancer scan attempt

Health Secretary James Murray has accepted advice from his advisers to limit access to a new national screening program to as few as 1,500 people.

But he was determined to expand an ongoing trial to include diagnostic tests and scans so that all black men ages 45 to 74 who had not had a PSA test or MRI prostate scan in the past five years could participate.

The Daily Mail is among those campaigning for an end to needless prostate cancer deaths and a national screening program targeting high-risk men, such as those who are black, have a family history of the disease or have certain genetic mutations.

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