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Adelaide research breakthrough to provide more accurate
prostate cancer diagnosis and treatment
June 2024
Adelaide man Andrew Bills considers himself lucky, after an early diagnosis of prostate cancer five
years ago.
"A lot of people say, 'You don't worry about getting prostate cancer until you're over 60'. Well I was
52," he told the ABC.
Mr Bills went through a standard series of tests to receive his diagnosis before he had surgery five
months later.
"There's a lot of uncertainty because you don't know what you're dealing with, and you don't know
the extent of what you're dealing with and what your options are, and it takes time," he said.
Scientists from the University of South Australia are aiming to reduce that uncertainty, with research
identifying precise biomarkers for prostate cancer, making it easier to pinpoint how the cancer will
progress.
Researcher Jessica Logan said current detection methods provide a "baseline overview", while the
technology they were working on was about "providing an accurate and reliable diagnosis" to avoid
patients from receiving too much or too little treatment.
Speaking to the ABC, Dr Logan said their focus was on low-risk patients.
"We know that within the first two years, there are 35 per cent of those patients who will require
some intervention, and within five years that increases to 59 per cent," she said.
"So for those patients that are in this low-risk category... trying to provide them with some clarity and
reassurance that we are on the right treatment intervention strategies is a major focus of what we're
doing," she said.
Dr Logan said Australia was looking at the most prostate cancer diagnoses this year on record.
She said it has taken researchers around 15 years to reach this stage, and it could be another five
before Australians reap the benefits.
"This is I guess our first step in producing a sound data set that will facilitate potentially a clinical trial
that will bring the technology here," Dr Logan said.
'Groundbreaking' research
The Prostate Cancer Foundation of Australia's Chief of Mission, Jeff Dunn, said Dr Logan's research
showed great promise.
"This research is groundbreaking," Professor Dunn said.
"It helps build a platform for the way we might treat prostate cancer in the future."
Professor Dunn said the research, which the Prostate Cancer Foundation has given a grant to, could
improve outcomes and quality of life for men.
"Dr Logan is using tumour-based biomarkers to help identify those prostate cancers where we need
to intervene — those who are per-haps needing earlier intervention in their treatment," he said.
Professor Dunn said the research will hopefully identify which prostate cancers require earlier
intervention, and therefore be able to "tailor and target treatment much more effectively".
"At the moment with prostate cancer, sometimes it difficult to determine in early stage disease which
ones are aggressive and need intervention and which ones are a little slower and we just need to
watch for a while before we actually get into more complex treatment," he said.
Mr Bills said early detection was "every-thing", and hoped the new technology could provide more
choice for patients in the future.
"I think this new technology is fundamental, because it will give men confidence about maybe not
having the operation, which is very invasive, because that's really the choices that I had.
"And to leave the prostate in and monitor it, and that improves the quality of life for men."
(Source ABC)
Greek Tribune
Adelaide, South Australia