Oxford Study: Blood Proteins May Signal Prostate Cancer Risk 15 Years Early

A groundbreaking study from Oxford Population Health found that certain proteins in men’s blood may signal a higher risk of prostate cancer more than 15 years before diagnosis. The findings could help transform how the world’s most common cancer in men is detected and managed.

Published in European Urology and presented at the American Society of Human Genetics Annual Meeting, the study analyzed blood samples from:

• 982 men who later developed prostate cancer
• 1,573 healthy men randomly selected from the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC)

Researchers measured more than 6,000 proteins in participants’ blood plasma. The follow-up period was approximately 16 years.

The team identified 12 proteins associated with prostate cancer diagnosed more than 15 years after blood collection, and 7 proteins linked specifically to aggressive forms of the disease.

One notable marker was GZMK, a protein produced by immune cells that help recognize and destroy abnormal cells. Another protein, ANKRD1, was found in cancers that spread or caused early death.

“By measuring thousands of proteins in blood collected years before diagnosis, we can begin to investigate how men who later develop aggressive prostate cancer may differ from men who do not,” said Dr. Zhe Huang, the study’s first author and a postdoctoral epidemiologist at Oxford Population Health.

Researchers stress that the identified proteins are not yet suitable for use as clinical diagnostic tests. However, the study marks an important step toward earlier, more targeted prostate cancer screening in the future.

Source: Euronews – Blood test could reveal prostate cancer risk more than a decade before diagnosis