Unusual Proteins in Blood of Prostate Cancer Patients

A study has found proteins in the blood of men with prostate cancer that were not present in the blood of healthy men. The study was conducted by researchers from Matritech Inc. (Newton, MA, USA) and scientists from The Johns Hopkins School of Medicine (Baltimore, MD, USA).

In the study, researchers tested the blood of 25 men with prostate cancer and 20 healthy men. Using mass spectroscopy, they found a specific protein in the blood of all 25 men with prostate cancer that was absent in the blood of the healthy men. Equally important, the cancer protein was found in five of the 25 men with cancer who were missed by prostate cancer antigen (PSA) testing.

The discovery process used in finding this protein was similar to that used by Matritech for the detection of breast, cervical, colon, and bladder cancer. Matritech's technology correlates levels of nuclear matrix protein (NMP) in body fluids to the presence of cancer. Clinical studies have validated the ability of NMPs to detect early-stage cancerous abnormalities.

"The preliminary results from the prostate cancer samples are encouraging and mark another step in the validation of our core technology,” said Dr. Joseph Briggman, director of immunoassay development at Matritech. "We are optimistic that these tests will enable Matritech to become the undisputed leader in fluid-based cancer testing.”



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