New Delhi: Prostate cancer incidence has been on the rise lately and when it comes to this disease, doctors recommend timely detection as this could be key to protecting oneself against death risk. However, according to experts, there is a 15-minute test that can diagnose the disease in men with 90% accuracy. Experts at Aston University, Birmingham, have developed a non-invasive technique that analyses crystals in dehydrated blood for cancer detection. This, researchers said, has opened up avenues for monitoring and detection of the disease which is gradually becoming one of the most common forms of tumours ever reported.
So far, the standard blood tests relied upon for prostate cancer diagnosis, which measures levels of prostate-specific antigen (PSA), is not accurate enough and further tests have found that tissue biopsies and rectal exams, are needed for detecting tumour and they are all invasive and uncomfortable. For this, experts anaylsed 108 dry blood smear samples from healthy people who had prostate cancer. The study’s results were published in Scientific Reports journal.
Researchers also examined protein structures in the blood with the help of new polarisation-based image reconstruction. Experts focused on how proteins alter their 3D shape and come together during the early phases of the disease. A detailed layer-by-layer analysis was done of dry blood smears. A crucial step for identifying differences between cancerous and healthy samples, it takes only 15 minutes, including the drying time. It was found that this can detect the disease with 90% accuracy.
Prostate cancer is to blame for 10% of cancer-related deaths in men. It is also the leading cause of death in older men. The condition characterised by an enlarged prostate, is often detected after 65 years of age. The blood test relied upon for it has the potential to improve survival rates for most patients and it can also improve treatment outcome. The new blood test works as a unique method that relies upon blood samples rather than invasive biopsies in order to make it a less traumatic experience for patients.
Researchers, however, stress the need for larger clinical trials to test the efficacy of the technique. This is imperative as thousands of men are diagnosed with prostate cancer every year which is why it is imperative to come up with an effective technique to diagnose it timely.
So far, the standard blood tests relied upon for prostate cancer diagnosis, which measures levels of prostate-specific antigen (PSA), is not accurate enough and further tests have found that tissue biopsies and rectal exams, are needed for detecting tumour and they are all invasive and uncomfortable. Health News Health News: Latest News from Health Care, Mental Health, Weight Loss, Disease, Nutrition, Healthcare
