title: Diagnostic markers of prostate cancer: utility of prostate-specific antigen in diagnosis and staging.
abstract: The optimal tumor marker for prostate cancer would be effective for early detection, staging, and monitoring patients after definitive treatment. This marker would have a high sensitivity, specificity, and positive predictive value for distinguishing men with benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) from men with early prostate cancer. Such a marker would consistently detect biologically significant disease, correlate with clinical and pathologic staging, and predict prognosis. In addition, this marker would be accurate at indicating cure or progression of disease after treatment. Certainly, the ideal marker also would be reproducible, inexpensive, generate results rapidly, be easy to perform, be accessible to clinicians, and tolerable to patients. Unfortunately, such a "super" marker does not exist at this time. However, prostate-specific antigen (PSA) has many of the aforementioned capabilities. This article will describe the current utility of PSA in the diagnosis and staging of prostate cancer.
authors.affiliation: Michigan Prostate Institute, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, USA.
authors.forename: C T
authors.initials: CT
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.forename: J E
authors.initials: JE
authors.lastname: Oesterling
mesh_terms: D000135:Acid Phosphatase / Q000378:metabolism; D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged; D000465:Algorithms; D000911:Antibodies, Monoclonal; D000951:Antigens, Neoplasm / Q000378:metabolism; D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor / Q000097:blood; D003937:Diagnosis, Differential; D018120:Finasteride / Q000627:therapeutic use; D006801:Humans; D008197:Lymph Node Excision; D008207:Lymphatic Metastasis; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D008970:Molecular Weight; D009367:Neoplasm Staging; D011237:Predictive Value of Tests; D011379:Prognosis; D011467:Prostate / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology; D017430:Prostate-Specific Antigen / Q000097:blood*; D011470:Prostatic Hyperplasia / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000378:metabolism; D011471:Prostatic Neoplasms / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology / Q000601:surgery; D016032:Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic; D012016:Reference Values; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D013997:Time Factors
chemical_list: D000911:Antibodies, Monoclonal; D000951:Antigens, Neoplasm; D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor; C067897:TURP-27 antigen, human; D018120:Finasteride; D000135:Acid Phosphatase; D017430:Prostate-Specific Antigen