Novel diagnostic biomarkers for prostate cancer

<p>Prostate cancer is the most frequently diagnosed malignancy in American men, and a more aggressive form of the disease is particularly prevalent among African Americans. The therapeutic success rate for prostate cancer can be tremendously improved if the disease is diagnosed early. Thus, a...

Full description

Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Chikezie O. Madu, Yi Lu
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Ivyspring International Publisher 2010-01-01
Series:Journal of Cancer
Online Access:http://www.jcancer.org/v01p0150.htm
_version_ 1818760273411964928
author Chikezie O. Madu, Yi Lu
author_facet Chikezie O. Madu, Yi Lu
author_sort Chikezie O. Madu, Yi Lu
collection DOAJ
description <p>Prostate cancer is the most frequently diagnosed malignancy in American men, and a more aggressive form of the disease is particularly prevalent among African Americans. The therapeutic success rate for prostate cancer can be tremendously improved if the disease is diagnosed early. Thus, a successful therapy for this disease depends heavily on the clinical indicators (biomarkers) for early detection of the presence and progression of the disease, as well as the prediction after the clinical intervention. However, the current clinical biomarkers for prostate cancer are not ideal as there remains a lack of reliable biomarkers that can specifically distinguish between those patients who should be treated adequately to stop the aggressive form of the disease and those who should avoid overtreatment of the indolent form.</p><p>A biomarker is a characteristic that is objectively measured and evaluated as an indicator of normal biologic processes, pathogenic processes, or pharmacologic responses to a therapeutic intervention. A biomarker reveals further information to presently existing clinical and pathological analysis. It facilitates screening and detecting the cancer, monitoring the progression of the disease, and predicting the prognosis and survival after clinical intervention. A biomarker can also be used to evaluate the process of drug development, and, optimally, to improve the efficacy and safety of cancer treatment by enabling physicians to tailor treatment for individual patients. The form of the prostate cancer biomarkers can vary from metabolites and chemical products present in body fluid to genes and proteins in the prostate tissues.</p><p>Current advances in molecular techniques have provided new tools facilitating the discovery of new biomarkers for prostate cancer. These emerging biomarkers will be beneficial and critical in developing new and clinically reliable indicators that will have a high specificity for the diagnosis and prognosis of prostate cancer. The purpose of this review is to examine the current status of prostate cancer biomarkers, with special emphasis on emerging markers, by evaluating their diagnostic and prognostic potentials. Both genes and proteins that reveal loss, mutation, or variation in expression between normal prostate and cancerous prostate tissues will be covered in this article. Along with the discovery of prostate cancer biomarkers, we will describe the criteria used when selecting potential biomarkers for further development towards clinical use. In addition, we will address how to appraise and validate candidate markers for prostate cancer and some relevant issues involved in these processes. We will also discuss the new concept of the biomarkers, existing challenges, and perspectives of biomarker development.</p>
first_indexed 2024-12-18T06:56:00Z
format Article
id doaj.art-7cd5d016cc4840b683ffab21cf45481e
institution Directory Open Access Journal
issn 1837-9664
language English
last_indexed 2024-12-18T06:56:00Z
publishDate 2010-01-01
publisher Ivyspring International Publisher
record_format Article
series Journal of Cancer
spelling doaj.art-7cd5d016cc4840b683ffab21cf45481e2022-12-21T21:17:11ZengIvyspring International PublisherJournal of Cancer1837-96642010-01-0111150177Novel diagnostic biomarkers for prostate cancerChikezie O. Madu, Yi Lu<p>Prostate cancer is the most frequently diagnosed malignancy in American men, and a more aggressive form of the disease is particularly prevalent among African Americans. The therapeutic success rate for prostate cancer can be tremendously improved if the disease is diagnosed early. Thus, a successful therapy for this disease depends heavily on the clinical indicators (biomarkers) for early detection of the presence and progression of the disease, as well as the prediction after the clinical intervention. However, the current clinical biomarkers for prostate cancer are not ideal as there remains a lack of reliable biomarkers that can specifically distinguish between those patients who should be treated adequately to stop the aggressive form of the disease and those who should avoid overtreatment of the indolent form.</p><p>A biomarker is a characteristic that is objectively measured and evaluated as an indicator of normal biologic processes, pathogenic processes, or pharmacologic responses to a therapeutic intervention. A biomarker reveals further information to presently existing clinical and pathological analysis. It facilitates screening and detecting the cancer, monitoring the progression of the disease, and predicting the prognosis and survival after clinical intervention. A biomarker can also be used to evaluate the process of drug development, and, optimally, to improve the efficacy and safety of cancer treatment by enabling physicians to tailor treatment for individual patients. The form of the prostate cancer biomarkers can vary from metabolites and chemical products present in body fluid to genes and proteins in the prostate tissues.</p><p>Current advances in molecular techniques have provided new tools facilitating the discovery of new biomarkers for prostate cancer. These emerging biomarkers will be beneficial and critical in developing new and clinically reliable indicators that will have a high specificity for the diagnosis and prognosis of prostate cancer. The purpose of this review is to examine the current status of prostate cancer biomarkers, with special emphasis on emerging markers, by evaluating their diagnostic and prognostic potentials. Both genes and proteins that reveal loss, mutation, or variation in expression between normal prostate and cancerous prostate tissues will be covered in this article. Along with the discovery of prostate cancer biomarkers, we will describe the criteria used when selecting potential biomarkers for further development towards clinical use. In addition, we will address how to appraise and validate candidate markers for prostate cancer and some relevant issues involved in these processes. We will also discuss the new concept of the biomarkers, existing challenges, and perspectives of biomarker development.</p>http://www.jcancer.org/v01p0150.htm
spellingShingle Chikezie O. Madu, Yi Lu
Novel diagnostic biomarkers for prostate cancer
Journal of Cancer
title Novel diagnostic biomarkers for prostate cancer
title_full Novel diagnostic biomarkers for prostate cancer
title_fullStr Novel diagnostic biomarkers for prostate cancer
title_full_unstemmed Novel diagnostic biomarkers for prostate cancer
title_short Novel diagnostic biomarkers for prostate cancer
title_sort novel diagnostic biomarkers for prostate cancer
url http://www.jcancer.org/v01p0150.htm
work_keys_str_mv AT chikezieomaduyilu noveldiagnosticbiomarkersforprostatecancer