Beckman announced the national availability of the index of the health of the prostate -
Beckman Coulter Diagnostics, a world leader in the diagnosis of prostate cancer, announced the availability national index of the health of the prostate (phi) *, a simple test non-invasive blood which is three times more accurate in the detection of prostate cancer1 the PSA (prostate specific antigen). The precision of the new test reduces the need for many men tested positive for elevated PSA levels for biopsy in order to achieve a reliable diagnosis.
The test of the most widely used screening for prostate cancer is currently the PSA test, which measures the level of PSA, a protein which is naturally produced by the prostate gland and is generally increased when cancer is present in the blood. However, it is widely acknowledged that PSA results can often indicate the possibility of prostate cancer when none is present.
"The PSA test is based on the fact that men with higher levels of PSA protein are more likely to have prostate cancer," said William Catalona, MD, principal investigator of health Index study of the clinical prostate and urologist at Northwestern Medicine and director of the clinical prostate cancer program at the Lurie Comprehensive cancer Center of Northwestern Robert H. University, where they began to use the test phi on patients in February. Dr. Catalona, who was the first doctor in the United States to run the phi test, added: "However, the problem is that higher levels of PSA can also be caused by a benign enlargement or inflammation of prostate, leading to many false positives for cancer and ultimately unnecessary invasive biopsies and increased potential for harm to patients. "
substantially increasing the accuracy of phi test PSA on addresses that concern. The results of a multicenter clinical study found a reduction of 31 percent in unnecessary biopsies because of false positives as a result of the use of test.1 phi
"The phi test helps doctors distinguish prostate cancer from benign conditions by using three different markers PSA (PSA, and freePSA p2PSA) within the framework of a sophisticated algorithm to determine more reliably the probability of cancer patients with high levels of PSA, "said Kevin Slawin, MD, Director, Vanguard urologic Institute at Memorial Hermann Medical Group, clinical Professor of Urology at Baylor College of Medicine and director of Urology, Memorial Hermann Hospital-Texas Medical Center, who conducted part of the key research that led to the development of Phi test and has also started using the test in February. "We have seen firsthand how phi is much more accurate and reduces the need for biopsies prostate. And that phi is a simple blood test has been very attractive for our patients. "
The phi test is now available to physicians nationwide through Innovative Diagnostics Laboratory (IDL ), a laboratory of national clinical reference specializing in personalized blood-based tests to find, understand and treat cancer.
"phi test is a real progress in the science of cancer management prostate, and we are delighted to be the first laboratory to offer this test to across the United States to physicians, "said Tonya Mallory, CEO, president and co-founder of innovative diagnostics laboratory. "The index of the health of the prostate is an important addition to our full menu of advanced clinical blood tests based on evidence that aid in the early detection of cancer."
"After years of collaboration with some of the leading researchers in prostate cancer worldwide and medical institutions who have studied the scientific and clinical benefits of phi, we are pleased that the test is now available to help physicians and patients with an elevated PSA test result, more precisely detect prostate cancer2 "said John Blackwood, Vice President, Chemistry / Immunoassay Business Unit, Beckman Coulter Diagnostics.
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