Major study shows complexed prostate specific antigen (cPSA) to be more predictive of prostate cancer than total PSA, resulting in fewer false diagnoses and unnecessary biopsies
A major study, recently published in the Journal of Urology, has concluded that measuring the concentration of complexed prostate specific antigen (cPSA) in serum is more accurate than total PSA for the detection of prostate cancer.
The cPSA test was not only shown to be more predictive of the disease, but also that its use results in fewer false diagnoses and unnecessary biopsies than the standard total PSA test.
The cPSA assay is available from Bayer Diagnostics, a division of Bayer HealthCare, for use on the company's automated immunoassay systems, Advia Centaur and Bayer Immuno 1.
The study evaluated the predictive accuracy of both cPSA and total PSA by comparing results from serum samples obtained from a group of 831 men, 313 of whom were known to have prostate cancer.
cPSA was found to be significantly more predictive of cancer than total PSA, providing an improvement in specificity (ie, reduced false positives) compared to total PSA. Urologists are increasingly looking at the lower range of PSA values to be sure they catch possible cases of prostate cancer. Since this lower range also includes many men without cancer, the greater specificity of the cPSA test is an important advantage over the standard total PSA test.
"The findings of this study are important because they suggest that use of the assay can decrease the number of unnecessary prostate cancer biopsies, particularly if a lower PSA threshold is utilised", says Bayer's product manager for the cPSA assay, Fiona Howe. "This approach not only has the potential to save healthcare expenditures but will also spare many men the discomfort and anxiety associated with invasive biopsy procedures."
