A new test could make diagnosing prostate cancer much easier, with a breakthrough method allowing detection in just 15 minutes.
Currently, testing for prostate cancer can be uncomfortable and invasive, requiring rectal exams and tissue biopsies.
But researchers now say they have found a way to detect the cancer with a 90% accuracy rate before any symptoms appear, just by looking at samples of dried blood.
It means they could get a strong idea of if someone has prostate cancer from a simple blood test.
And it could lead to a general screening programme, such as is currently available for bowel, breast, and cervical cancers.
The blood test used currently, which measures levels of a protein called prostate-specific antigen (PSA), is not accurate enough which is why such a screening programme does not exist already.
Although the research published in the journal Scientific Reports is promising, it is still a long way from being ready to roll out, as so far it has only been tested in a small number of patients.
To carry out the study, researchers at Aston University in Birmingham analysed crystal-like structures in 108 dry blood smear samples from healthy volunteers as well as those who had prostate cancer.
They examined the protein structures in the blood samples using a technique known as new polarisation-based image reconstruction.
They focused on how proteins change their 3D shape and join together during early stages of the disease, conducting a detailed layer-by-layer analysis of dry blood smears.
This step is crucial for identifying significant differences between healthy and cancerous samples, the researchers said.
Professor Igor Meglinski, from the Aston Institute of Photonic Technologies, said: ‘This breakthrough opens new avenues for cancer diagnosis and monitoring, representing a substantial leap forward in personalised medicine and oncology.’
The entire process, including drying time, takes up to 15 minutes and ‘holds ‘immense potential for revolutionising cancer diagnosis’.
Prof Meglinski added: ‘Prostate cancer accounts for nearly 10% of cancer deaths in men and is one of the leading causes of death in older men.
‘However, the life expectancy of 90% of patients diagnosed with prostate cancer at stage 1 or 2 is 15 years or more.
‘By enabling earlier and more accurate detection, our blood test has the potential to significantly improve outcomes and survival rates for many patients.’
Larger clinical trials are needed to confirm the technique’s potential.
Dr Matthew Hobbs, director of research at Prostate Cancer UK, who was not involved in the study, said: ‘Over 10,000 men each year are diagnosed when their cancer has already spread and become incurable, which is why it’s so important that we find new and better tests for prostate cancer.
‘The big issue is proving that these tests are better than what we have already.
‘So far, this has been tested on a relatively small number of samples, so we’ll need to see more research before we can know how effective it will be.’
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