Study identifies novel biomarker of prostate cancer reoccurrence
Researchers have discovered a biomarker linked to the reoccurrence of prostate cancer.
A group of scientists, from Vanderbilt University Medical Center (TN, USA) and the University of Alberta (Alberta, Canada), recently reported the identification of a biomarker that predicts prostate cancer reoccurrence. In North America, prostate cancer is the second leading cause of cancer-related deaths and therefore, a biomarker identifying patients at risk of reoccurrence is essential to indicate which patients require aggressive treatment.
The team, led by Andries Zijlstra from Vanderbilt University Medical Center and John Lewis from the University of Alberta, studied the protein CD151. In non-cancerous cells CD151 is bound to its adhesion partner integrin, which facilitates binding to surrounding tissue. The results demonstrated that integrin-free CD151 can regulate tumor cell migration and correlates with tumor metastasis.
The study analyzed tissue samples from 137 Canadian patients with prostate cancer, over a period of 12 years. Integrin-free CD151 levels in patients correlated with poor patient outcome as explained by Lewis, “Patients who tested positive for the biomarker developed metastasis an average of 10 years earlier than those who tested negative.”
Zijlstra commented on the biomarker discovery, “It was a big surprise that some of this CD151 protein was now free of its adhesion partner and it turns out that it only occurs when a cancer is formed.” Zijlstra continued, “What’s so novel about this discovery is we’re not talking about changing protein expression, which is what we traditionally see. We’re talking about a protein that changes its molecular state and detection of that molecular state is an indication of disease progression.”
Zijlstra concluded, “It is increasingly clear that a molecular switch in cell migration corresponds to patient outcome in solid tumors. Consequently, the detection of that switch can assist in determining whether a patient is going to develop aggressive cancer or if the disease will remain benign. That information ultimately determines the type of care given to a cancer patient.”
The team is currently developing an antibody test to detect integrin-free CD151, which can be used in the clinic.
Sources: Predictor of prostate cancer outcomes identified; Palmer TD, Martínez CH, Vasquez C et al. Integrin-free tetraspanin CD151 can inhibit tumor cell motility upon clustering and is a clinical indicator of prostate cancer progression. Cancer Res. 74(1), 173–87 (2014).
