Cedars-Sinai Cancer investigators have developed a new nanotechnology-based test that can detect and profile prostate cancers-;even in microscopic amounts. Their work, published in the peer-reviewed journal nanotoday, suggests that this “liquid biopsy” test could spare many patients unnecessary treatment-related side effects, directing them instead to effective therapies that could prolong their lives.
“This research will revolutionize the liquid biopsy in prostate cancer,” said Edwin Posadas, MD, medical director of the Urologic Oncology Program and co-director of the Experimental Therapeutics Program in Cedars-Sinai Cancer. “The test is fast, minimally invasive and cost-effective, and opens up a new suite of tools that will help us optimize treatment and quality of life for prostate cancer patients.”
Cancer of the prostate, a walnut-sized gland just below the bladder, is the most common cancer and second-leading cause of cancer death among U.S. men.
The test developed by Posadas and co-investigators isolates and characterizes extracellular vesicles, also called EVs, from blood samples. EVs are microscopic packets of protein and genetic material that are shed by cells. The EV Digital Scoring Assay can pull these EV packets from the blood with unprecedented efficiency and analyze them in a manner that is faster than any currently available test.
The investigators tested blood samples from 40 patients with prostate cancer and found that the test was able to distinguish cancer localized to the prostate from cancer that had spread to other parts of the body.
Posadas envisions this test being used to help patients who have their prostate gland removed and later experience a rise in levels of prostate-specific antigen (PSA) in their blood. This happens in about 30% of post-surgical patients, and elevated PSA levels can indicate cancer recurrence.
If a remnant of the cancer has been left behind in the prostate bed, where the prostate gland once was, Posadas said focused radiation therapy can cure the disease or delay progression. But that treatment is not without risks.
“The bladder and rectum are near the prostate bed and can be damaged during the course of radiation therapy,” Posadas said. “The risk is only worth it if a man is going to benefit.”
If microscopic cancer deposits have spread outside the prostate area, focused radiation treatment will not prevent disease progression. These deposits, called micro-metastases, are not always detectable, even via the most advanced imaging, but investigators were able to detect them using the EV test.
“This would allow many patients to avoid the potential harms of radiation that isn’t targeting their disease, and instead receive systemic therapy that could slow disease progression,” Posadas said.
In retrospective case studies, investigators tested blood samples taken over time from three prostate cancer patients, including one patient who had undergone focused radiation treatments.
“At the time he was being treated, I was concerned that he was not benefiting,” Posadas said. “And the test results mirrored his clinical behavior and showed that, indeed, the treatments were not effective because he had micro-metastatic disease.”
The test is the latest in a yearslong series of Cedars-Sinai Cancer breakthroughs involving EVs. Posadas said that it could also be adapted to guide treatment as prostate cancer therapies become more targeted at the molecular level, ultimately extending patients’ lives. Posadas and his team of investigators are now working to further refine the test so that it can be studied in greater detail.
“This type of liquid biopsy, coupled with innovations such as our Molecular Twin initiative, is key to next-generation precision medicine that represents the newest frontier in cancer treatment,” said Dan Theodorescu, MD, PhD, director of Cedars-Sinai Cancer and the PHASE ONE Distinguished Chair. “And the type of progress we are making is only possible at an institution such as Cedars-Sinai Cancer, where we have patients, clinicians, scientists and creative engineering minds converging as one unit to address the most challenging problems in cancer.”
Posadas and the team aim to work with local and national partners and hope to see the test come into wide clinical practice in the near future.
News
This Viral RNA Structure Could Lead to a Universal Antiviral Drug
Researchers identify a shared RNA-protein interaction that could lead to broad-spectrum antiviral treatments for enteroviruses. A new study from the University of Maryland, Baltimore County (UMBC), published in Nature Communications, explains how enteroviruses begin reproducing [...]
New study suggests a way to rejuvenate the immune system
Stimulating the liver to produce some of the signals of the thymus can reverse age-related declines in T-cell populations and enhance response to vaccination. As people age, their immune system function declines. T cell [...]
Nerve Damage Can Disrupt Immunity Across the Entire Body
A single nerve injury can quietly reshape the immune system across the entire body. Preclinical research from McGill University suggests that nerve injuries may lead to long-lasting changes in the immune system, and these [...]
Fake Science Is Growing Faster Than Legitimate Research, New Study Warns
New research reveals organized networks linking paper mills, intermediaries, and compromised academic journals Organized scientific fraud is becoming increasingly common, ranging from fabricated research to the buying and selling of authorship and citations, according [...]
Scientists Unlock a New Way to Hear the Brain’s Hidden Language
Scientists can finally hear the brain’s quietest messages—unlocking the hidden code behind how neurons think, decide, and remember. Scientists have created a new protein that can capture the incoming chemical signals received by brain [...]
Does being infected or vaccinated first influence COVID-19 immunity?
A new study analyzing the immune response to COVID-19 in a Catalan cohort of health workers sheds light on an important question: does it matter whether a person was first infected or first vaccinated? [...]
We May Never Know if AI Is Conscious, Says Cambridge Philosopher
As claims about conscious AI grow louder, a Cambridge philosopher argues that we lack the evidence to know whether machines can truly be conscious, let alone morally significant. A philosopher at the University of [...]
AI Helped Scientists Stop a Virus With One Tiny Change
Using AI, researchers identified one tiny molecular interaction that viruses need to infect cells. Disrupting it stopped the virus before infection could begin. Washington State University scientists have uncovered a method to interfere with a key [...]
Deadly Hospital Fungus May Finally Have a Weakness
A deadly, drug-resistant hospital fungus may finally have a weakness—and scientists think they’ve found it. Researchers have identified a genetic process that could open the door to new treatments for a dangerous fungal infection [...]
Fever-Proof Bird Flu Variant Could Fuel the Next Pandemic
Bird flu viruses present a significant risk to humans because they can continue replicating at temperatures higher than a typical fever. Fever is one of the body’s main tools for slowing or stopping viral [...]
What could the future of nanoscience look like?
Society has a lot to thank for nanoscience. From improved health monitoring to reducing the size of electronics, scientists’ ability to delve deeper and better understand chemistry at the nanoscale has opened up numerous [...]
Scientists Melt Cancer’s Hidden “Power Hubs” and Stop Tumor Growth
Researchers discovered that in a rare kidney cancer, RNA builds droplet-like hubs that act as growth control centers inside tumor cells. By engineering a molecular switch to dissolve these hubs, they were able to halt cancer [...]
Platelet-inspired nanoparticles could improve treatment of inflammatory diseases
Scientists have developed platelet-inspired nanoparticles that deliver anti-inflammatory drugs directly to brain-computer interface implants, doubling their effectiveness. Scientists have found a way to improve the performance of brain-computer interface (BCI) electrodes by delivering anti-inflammatory drugs directly [...]
After 150 years, a new chapter in cancer therapy is finally beginning
For decades, researchers have been looking for ways to destroy cancer cells in a targeted manner without further weakening the body. But for many patients whose immune system is severely impaired by chemotherapy or radiation, [...]
Older chemical libraries show promise for fighting resistant strains of COVID-19 virus
SARS‑CoV‑2, the virus that causes COVID-19, continues to mutate, with some newer strains becoming less responsive to current antiviral treatments like Paxlovid. Now, University of California San Diego scientists and an international team of [...]
Lower doses of immunotherapy for skin cancer give better results, study suggests
According to a new study, lower doses of approved immunotherapy for malignant melanoma can give better results against tumors, while reducing side effects. This is reported by researchers at Karolinska Institutet in the Journal of the National [...]
