Metastatic workup of patients with prostate cancer employing skeletal alkaline phosphatase.
OBJECTIVE
To compare the efficacy of two tests, prostate-specific antigen (PSA) and skeletal alkaline phosphatase (SAP) as staging markers to discriminate patients with cancer of the prostate (CaP) with bony metastases (M1) from those without bony metastases (Mo).


METHODS
Forty-seven untreated patients with Mo (n = 26) and M1 (n = 21) CaP were entered in this study. Serum concentrations for SAP and PSA were determined using two immunoassays.


RESULTS
None of the Mo patients but 65% of the M1 patients exhibited a SAP value above the reference range (< 19 ng/ml). A corresponding cut-offpoint of 100 ng/ml for PSA showed that 27% of Mo patients and only 65% of the M1 patients exhibited a value > 100 ng/ml. This resulted in a sensitivity and specificity of 65% and 100% for SAP and 65% and 73% for PSA.


CONCLUSIONS
Our findings suggest that SAP could become a useful marker in the evaluation of patients with newly diagnosed CaP as it seems to provide additional information concerning the skeletal status of these patients.
Wolff
J M
JM
Department of Urology, RWTH Aachen, Germany.
Ittel
T H
TH
Boeckmann
W
W
Habib
F K
FK
Jakse
G
G
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000469:Alkaline Phosphatase / Q000378:metabolism*; D001859:Bone Neoplasms / Q000556:secondary*; D001842:Bone and Bones / Q000201:enzymology*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D017430:Prostate-Specific Antigen / Q000097:blood; D011471:Prostatic Neoplasms / Q000175:diagnosis*
D000469:Alkaline Phosphatase; D017430:Prostate-Specific Antigen