Conference report and review: current status of biomarkers potentially associated with prostate cancer outcomes.
OBJECTIVE
The use of prostate specific antigen screening to diagnose and monitor prostate cancer is associated with well-known shortcomings. A 2-day Prostate Cancer Biomarker Conference was convened to identify promising areas of research and focus efforts on the most critical needs.


METHODS
The conference provided a forum for the presentation and discussion of ongoing prostate cancer biomarker research. This meeting also sought to identify a range of critical issues in the development and validation of biomarkers, foster research collaboration between groups representing government, academic and industry initiatives, and coordinate efforts with planned and ongoing clinical trials.


RESULTS
Taken collectively the conference presentations offered various new technologies for biomarker discovery and pathological assessment of clinical disease as well as the promise of biomarkers for improving prostate cancer diagnosis and treatment decisions. However, research efforts focused on biomarker validation and implementation clearly lag behind those directed toward initial biomarker discovery. It is apparent that guidelines are desperately needed to ensure the consistency of sample collection across institutions.


CONCLUSIONS
Several ongoing and planned adjuvant prostate cancer trials will provide a tremendous opportunity for biological sample collection along with the potential to validate many biomarkers. Practicing urologists have an opportunity to have a critical role in the successful accrual of patients into these trials.
Flaig
Thomas W
TW
Department of Medicine, University of Colorado at Denver and Health Sciences University Denver, Aurora, Colorado 80045, USA. Thomas.Flaig@UCHSC.edu
Nordeen
Steven K
SK
Lucia
M Scott
MS
Harrison
Gail S
GS
Glodé
L Michael
LM
D015415:Biomarkers / Q000097:blood; D002986:Clinical Trials as Topic; D003226:Congresses as Topic; D005544:Forecasting; D023281:Genomics; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D017430:Prostate-Specific Antigen / Q000097:blood*; D011471:Prostatic Neoplasms / Q000097:blood* / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000235:genetics; D040901:Proteomics; D015203:Reproducibility of Results
D015415:Biomarkers; D017430:Prostate-Specific Antigen