Nuclear Matrix Proteins May Improved Prostate Cancer Detection

Through the use of PSA has been very helpful in the earlier detection of prostate cancer, PSA is only prostate specific and not prostate cancer specific. For this reason, research in the laboratories of Dr. Donald S. Coffey and Dr. Alan Partin has focused on characterizing unique proteins that make up the structural network of the cancer cells nucleus, proteins that are prostate cancer specific which might improve early cancer detection. Recently, Drs. Coffey and Partin have identified one protein (PC-1) which has been identified in all prostate cancer tissues examined and not in any normal or benign prostatic hyperplasia specimens. They are currently in the process of purifying and characterizing this protein to determine its usefulness as a new and potentially more specific serum marker for prostate cancer.