title: Cytokeratin 19 expression by reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction in the peripheral blood of prostate cancer patients.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Sensitive reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction-based techniques for detection of epithelial antigen expression, such as cytokeratin 19, in the peripheral blood mononuclear fraction of prostate cancer patients may allow the detection of tumor progression at A molecular level.
  
  
  METHODS
  We studied cytokeratin 19 expression by reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction in peripheral blood mononuclear cell samples of 10 control men and serially in 44 patients with prostate cancer every three months for 18 months.
  
  
  RESULTS
  None of the 10 normal control men expressed cytokeratin 19 in their peripheral blood mononuclear fraction. In the patients, cytokeratin 19 positivity at entry was not associated with age, Gleason score, clinical stage, prostate-specific antigen or alkaline phosphatase. Interestingly, having at least one positive cytokeratin 19 result during follow-up correlated significantly with time to prostate-specific antigen progression (P = 0.049), especially in the subgroup of metastatic patients (P = 0.032).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  We conclude that cytokeratin 19 expression by reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction in the peripheral blood mononuclear cell fraction of prostate cancer patients correlates with time to prostate-specific antigen progression. Further studies are needed to confirm these findings.
authors.affiliation: Disciplina de Urologia da Faculdade de Medicina da Fundação ABC, FMUSP, S Paulo, Brazil.
authors.forename: Marcos
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Tobias-Machado
authors.forename: Fernando
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Fonseca
authors.forename: Ana Paula
authors.initials: AP
authors.lastname: Fantinato
authors.forename: Israel
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Bendit
authors.forename: Marcelo Langer
authors.initials: ML
authors.lastname: Wroclawski
authors.forename: Eric
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Wroclawski
authors.forename: Auro
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: del Giglio
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor / Q000096:biosynthesis* / Q000097:blood; D018450:Disease Progression; D006801:Humans; D007633:Keratins / Q000096:biosynthesis* / Q000097:blood; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011446:Prospective Studies; D017430:Prostate-Specific Antigen / Q000097:blood*; D011471:Prostatic Neoplasms / Q000235:genetics* / Q000473:pathology*; D020133:Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity
chemical_list: D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor; D007633:Keratins; D017430:Prostate-Specific Antigen