Semen analysis may improve detection of prostate cancer

He prostate cancer It is the second most common type of cancer in men and it is estimated that 30,316 new cases will be diagnosed in our country by the end of this year, according to the report “Cancer figures in Spain in 2024”. This disease has a high cure rate if detected early, and its diagnosis is currently based primarily on digital rectal examination and measurement of PSA (prostate-specific antigen) levels in the blood.

Elevated PSA levels are generally associated with a higher risk of developing this tumor, and since this screening method was introduced, mortality from prostate cancer has decreased significantly. However, this test has certain limitations because in many cases, an increase in PSA can be associated with other prostate diseases such as infections, inflammation or benign hyperplasia, leading to overdiagnosis of cancer and performing unnecessary biopsies

.

Moreover, PSA levels are not associated with tumor aggressiveness, survival, or response to treatment, leading to overtreatment of non-aggressive tumors. Therefore, there is a need to develop more accurate noninvasive biomarkers that complement and improve the current method of prostate cancer screening. Now, a new study led by researchers at the Bellwitge Institute for Biomedical Research (IDIBELL) has identified biomarkers that could improve the non-invasive detection of clinically significant cases of prostate cancer.

An effective and non-invasive method for detecting prostate tumors

Previous studies have shown that in prostate tumors there are significant changes in the levels of certain small non-coding RNAs (sncRNAs), which, although they do not generate proteins, do regulate gene expression. Among them, microRNAs and cRNAs stand out as having great potential as biomarkers for prostate cancer, and IDIBELL researchers have confirmed the usefulness of cRNAs present in semen as biomarkers for this type of cancer.

“In previous studies, we developed tests based on levels of microRNAs in semen that are useful as biomarkers for prostate cancer; “We now show that altered tumor cRNA levels can also be detected and quantified in these semen samples,” said a note published by IDIBELL. Dr. Sarah LarribaPrincipal Researcher in the field of molecular genetics of male infertility and urogenital diseases at IDIBELL and director of the study, which involved the Urological Service of the Bellvitge University Hospital, the Andrological Service of the Puigvert Foundation and the High Content Genomics and Bioinformatics Unit of the IGTP. .

“We believe that models derived from semen cRNAs as non-invasive biomarkers will improve the diagnosis of prostate cancer when combined with PSA testing.”

The authors of the study, the results of which were published in International Journal of Molecular Sciencesconsider sperm a source of information not only for assessing male fertility, but also for identify pathologies affecting other organs of the reproductive systemlike a prostate.

For this analysis, Adriana Ferré-Giraldo, IDIBELL researcher and first author of the study, explains that “from large-scale sequencing studies, we selected different candidate tsRNAs that could reflect prostate health and then tested them in semen. “We believe that models derived from semen cRNAs as non-invasive biomarkers will improve the clinical diagnosis of prostate cancer when combined with PSA testing.”

The combination of both tests may represent a more effective approach to non-invasive detection of prostate cancer, complementing existing diagnostic tools and identifying only clinically significant cases and avoid overdiagnosis and unnecessary biopsies. In addition, the implementation of these biomarkers will allow for more accurate disease prognosis, distinguishing indolent and aggressive tumors with greater confidence.

Source: Bellwitge Institute for Biomedical Research (IDIBELL).