UroToday - The Electromagnetic Detection of Prostatic Cancer: Evaluation of Diagnostic Accuracy - Abstract

March 27, 2008

Wednesday, 26 March 2008

Department of Urology, Sant' Hospital, 2nd School of Medicine, " La

Sapienza " University of Rome, Rome, Italy.

To evaluate the accuracy of the TRIMprob in the diagnosis of prostate

neoplasm.

Consecutive patients referred for prostate biopsy were prospectively

enrolled. Patients had history taken, physical examination by digital rectal

examination (DRE) of the prostate, assessment of total and free serum

prostate-specific antigen (PSA) levels, prostate transrectal ultrasonography

(TRUS), and TRIMprob test. Indications for prostate biopsy included one or

more of the following conditions: total serum PSA levels of 4.0 ng/mL or

more, free/total serum PSA ratio of 0.18 or less, positive results on DRE,

and suspicious findings on TRUS. Twelve-core, TRUS-guided biopsies were

performed with local anesthesia. A blinded investigator performed the

TRIMprob test; the lowest value of the signal at 465 MHz was looked for and

recorded, although data of the electromagnetic signal at 930 and 1295 MHz

were also recorded.

One hundred eleven patients (aged 64.9 +/- 8.1 years, mean +/- standard

deviation), enrolled between November 2004 and August 2005, were analyzed.

Total serum PSA level was 8.4 +/- 3.6 ng/mL, and free/total serum PSA ratio

was 0.15 +/- 0.7. TRIMprob sensitivity for the diagnosis of prostate cancer

was 0.86%; specificity and positive and negative predictive values were 0.60

and 0.88; accuracy was 72%. TRIMprob accuracy outperformed any other

diagnostic parameter considered, including the rule of chance. The

association of TRIMprob and DRE offered a sensitivity and a negative

predictive value of 0.86% or greater.

TRIMprob had the highest accuracy rate, among all other tests, for the

diagnosis of prostate cancer. Electromagnetic detection with the TRIMprob

test seems to be a promising technology and a useful additional tool for the

early detection of prostate cancer.

Written by

Tubaro A, De Nunzio C, Trucchi A, Stoppacciaro A, Miano L.

Reference

Urology. 2008 Mar 10. Epub ahead of print.

PubMed Abstract

PMID:18336888

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