Prostate tumor markers

Prostate tumor markers are not the disease level or condition of prostate tumors as we think, but refer to prostate-specific antigens, which are antigens that exist in the body to fight against tumor cells. However, they do not begin to derive after prostate tumors appear. Even in healthy people, there are very small amounts of specific antigens, but if the antigen content is found to be excessive, you need to pay attention to whether there is a problem with the prostate.

Prostate tumor markers are generally called prostate-specific antigens, and their normal range is between 0 and 4 nanograms per milliliter. If the prostate-specific antigen exceeds ten nanograms per milliliter, it is recommended to go to the hospital for a prostate puncture biopsy for a clear diagnosis. In addition, it is recommended to do a prostate color Doppler ultrasound, prostate CT, or prostate MRI to assist in the judgment. Prostate puncture biopsy has a positive rate of about 20-30%. If a prostate puncture biopsy is negative, you can do it again after a while.

Prostate tumors include those of prostate epithelial or mesenchymal origin, most of which are malignant tumors, including prostate cancer, prostate sarcoma, etc. Prostate cancer patients are mainly elderly men. There may be symptoms such as hematuria and dysuria, but since the large-scale development of serum prostate-specific antigen (PSA) testing in the mid-1990s, more and more early prostate cancers have been discovered, often without any symptoms. Prostate sarcoma is more common in young people, with a low incidence rate and dysuria as the first symptom. This disease is extremely malignant, develops very quickly, and has a very poor prognosis.

Recent progress has been made in understanding the molecular mechanisms of how normal prostate epithelial cells transform into metastatic, androgen-independent cancer cells. Cell dynamics, germline mutations, DNA methylation, tumor suppressor gene inactivation and oncogene activation, androgen receptor mutations, growth factors, and epithelial-stromal interactions all play important roles in the development and progression of prostate cancer.

The diagnosis of prostate cancer includes staging and histological type, which is mainly based on prostate biopsy or pathological examination of prostate surgery specimens, and other imaging examinations. Imaging examinations can provide a basis for the staging of prostate cancer. The current diagnostic process of prostate cancer is as follows: serum PSA screening or rectal indications are performed on patients. For patients with elevated PSA or suspicious indications, systematic prostate puncture biopsy is performed under the guidance of B-ultrasound, combined with imaging examinations to clarify the clinical stage, thereby determining the treatment principles and methods.