One of the greatest challenges for prostate cancer patients is determining whether their cancer is likely to return after treatment. Now there is a new test that identifies which men are at highest risk.
The new test uses genetics to determine the men that will do well with local treatment (surgery or radiation) and those who will need additional treatment (chemotherapy and hormone therapy) to prevent the cancer’s return.
“This is personalized cancer medicine to the hilt – the ability to provide more targeted treatment to patients based on their unique cancer genetic fingerprint plus what’s going on in the cancer cell’s surrounding environment,” said Dr. Robert Bristow, co-discoverer of the test. “We hope to improve cure rates by reducing the chances of the cancer recurring and prevent the cells from spreading.”
The test uses biopsy tissue taken before treatment to search for an abnormal genetic characteristic (gene signature) and then combines it with information on the cell’s oxygen content. The study, published in Lancet Online, predicted with almost 80 percent accuracy the cancers that would return.
Bristow estimated three-to-five years of research will be needed before the new test is ready for general use.
© 2025 NewsmaxHealth. All rights reserved.