Ultrasound-guided seminal vesicle biopsies in prostate cancer

Invasion of prostatic adenocarcinoma into the seminal vesicles (SV) is generally accepted as an index of poor prognosis. The pre-operative identification of SV invasion is an important element in staging since it may alter subsequent treatment decisions. We studied the possibility of diagnosing SV invasion with two biopsies from the junction between the prostate and seminal vesicles. Also we studied the correlation of several prognostic factors with the risk of clinical stage T-1,T-2,T-3 prostate cancer patients of having cancer growth into the seminal vesicles. Consecutive patients referred for transrectal ultrasound (TRUS) and biopsy because of clinical suspicion of prostate cancer were examined. This staging procedure was evaluated in patients who underwent a pelvic lymphadenectomy and radical retropubic prostatectomy (RRP). In 83 out of 138 patients prostate cancer was detected whereas 55 patients had benign disease. In 44% of prostate cancer patients a positive SV biopsy was found. The accuracy of the biopsies adjacent to the junction of the SV and the prostate was 91%. The best predictors for SV invasion were tumor grade of the biopsy sample (P In a receiver operating characteristic curves analysis, PSA density was significantly more accurate for prediction of SV invasion than PSA or f/t PSA ratio. In five prostatectomized patients (and negative SV biopsy) no SV invasion was found in the final pathologic examination either. SV biopsy at the junction of the SV and prostate is accurate for staging with high efficacy and low morbidity. To predict SV invasion in prostate cancer patients, PSA density was more accurate than PSA or f/t PSA ratio. The determination of the f/t PSA ratio in patients with low and intermediate PSA levels (e

Telomerase activity in needle biopsies from prostate cancer and benign prostates

Background Telomerase activation is thought to be essential for the immortality of cancer cells. It may be a prognostic factor in small volume well differentiated prostate cancers and hence a guide for the aggressiveness of the approach. The length of the chromosome tips (telomeres) are maintained by a specific enzyme (telomerase) independently of the normal cell division cycle. Although telomerase is not expressed in most normal human tissues, it is expressed in most human tumours. For the detection of telomerase in small prostate needle biopsy samples a recently developed telomeric repeat amplification protocol (TRAP) assay was used. The aim of the present study was: to measure telomerase activity in human prostate samples, and to evaluate the applicability of this assay on specimens from a prostate biopsy. Materials and methods From 36 patients referred for lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS) or suspicion of having prostate cancer a total of 288 prostate biopsy samples were obtained (8 in each patient). When the digital rectal examination was abnormal and/or when the PSA level was elevated in L.U.T.S., or asymptomatic patients' tissue samples were obtained by transrectal ultrasound (TRUS) guided biopsies. Samples were tested for telomerase activity by a modified TRAP and forwarded for histology. Results In 19 out of 36 patients prostate cancer was diagnosed on histology. In 11 of these 19 tumours substantial telomerase activity was detected, whereas only very low telomerase activity existed in 2 of 17 samples from benign prostatic hypertrophy (BPH) patients. In this small series the relative telomerase activity in prostate cancer correlated with histopathological grade. Conclusions Our results show the applicability of a TRAP assay to measure telomerase activity in small needle biopsied prostate samples. In poorly differentiated and metastatic cancer we observed that levels of telomerase activity were high. To establish accuracy and to distinguish the 'relative good from the ugly' further study is needed