Detection of Prostate Cancer
Prostate cancer is the second most prevalent
malignant cancer in North American men after skin cancer. It was estimated
that there would be 198,100 new cases in 2001 and that there would be 31,500
prostate cancer related deaths. Currently cancer screening is based on
Prostate Specific Antigen (PSA) blood testing, free PSA testing and Digital
Rectal Examination (DRE). When using a ‘cutoff’ of PSA > 4.0 ng/ML and
an abnormal DRE, sensitivity, specificity and Positive Predictive Value
(PPV) are 38%, 88% and 56% respectively. When either an elevated
PSA or an abnormal DRE are used, (in isolation – not in combination), sensitivity,
specificity and PPV are even lower.
In this project, funded by the Mellon Prostate
Cancer Research Institute, we seek to improve the sensitivity and specificity
of prostate cancer detection using ultrasound. We are attempting to use
elasticity imaging in a manner that essentially forms a synthetic DRE.
In this way, we hope to reduce the subjectivity of this approach for detecting
cancer and thus make it more accurate.
D. Theodorescu, MD, PhD and L. Watson, RDMS of
the University of Virginia Department of Urology are clinical collaborators
in this project. A special purpose transducer will be built by Vermon SA,
Tours, France.
