Sarcosine may distinguish slow-growing prostate cancers from those aggressive
March 25th, 2009 Posted in prostate cancer diagnosisSarcosine may distinguish slow-growing prostate cancers from those likely to spread and become lethal. Conveniently, sarcosine can be identified in urine, a less invasive test than the blood analysis needed for the standard prostate-specific antigen (PSA), a protein produced by the cells of the prostate gland. PSA is present in small quantities in the serum of healthy men, and is often elevated in the presence of prostate cancer. Quite often men have PSA scores that fall into a grey area. Therefore, invasive biopsy is needed to clarify a diagnosis.
According to Dr. Beecher from the University of Michigan , the results are promising: “Sarcosine continues to predict the aggressiveness of the tumours”. The metabolomic analysis yielded the observation that sarcosine was highly associated with tumour development. The scientific data support a correlation and provide biological insights.
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