PSA isoform may provide more specific test for BPH

An investigational laboratory test known as BPH-A may help identify BPH, researchers reported at a joint meeting of the International Federation of Clinical Chemistry and Laboratory Medicine and American Association for Clinical Chemistry in Orlando, FL. The test, which detects an isoform of PSA, is under study for use on Beckman Coulter, Inc.'s Access family of immunoassay systems.

Researchers from Beckman Coulter, working with William Catalona, MD, of Northwestern University, Chicago, studied immunoassays for BPH-A and other PSA isoforms in biopsy-positive and biopsy-negative serum from men with PSA in the 2.0 to 10.0 ng/mL range. BPH-A was significantly elevated in biopsy-negative men with elevated PSA compared with controls (p<.0001).

"Elevated [PSA] levels may be indicative of other prostatic conditions such as prostatitis and prostate cancer," said study co-author Bernard Cook, PhD, of Beckman Coulter. "Until now, there hasn't been an assay that is specific to BPH."

Beckman Coulter is currently developing a "research use only" version of BPH-A that will be used by select researchers to further study the usefulness of the test, Dr. Cook said.