TRANSFORMING GROWTH-FACTOR-BETA AS A CLINICAL BIOMARKER FOR PROSTATE-CANCER

Objectives. Tumor biomarkers to detect prostate cancer earlier may red uce prostate cancer deaths. Transforming growth factor-beta1 and -beta 2 (TGF-beta1 and -beta2) become overexpressed in prostate cancer and m ight be useful tumor markers of prostate cancer. Methods. Plasma and u rinary TGF-beta1 and plasma TGF-beta2 levels were studied preoperative ly in 74 consecutive patients who had prostate cancer and underwent ra dical prostatectomy and were compared with those of 29 similarly aged male control patients who had no clinical evidence of prostate cancer. Results. Plasma TGF-beta1 levels were similar in both prostate cancer and control groups and did not correlate with serum prostate-specific antigen (PSA), clinical and pathologic stages, or Gleason grade. Urin ary TGF-beta1 levels, however, increased 3.5-fold in patients with pro state cancer relative to controls and tended to be higher with advanci ng clinical and pathologic stages. Plasma TGF-beta2 levels, like plasm a TGF-beta1 levels, were similar for both the study and control groups , but when stratified by pathologic stage or Gleason grade, patients w ith prostate cancer with pathologic Stage T2a and Gleason grade of 3 o r less had significantly increased plasma TGF-beta2 levels as compared with either control patients or patients with prostate cancer with pa thologic Stages T2b/T2c and T3/T4 or Gleason grade of 4 or more, sugge sting that early prostate cancer may contribute to plasma TGF-beta2 le vels. Conclusions; Unlike plasma TGF-beta 1 levels, urinary TGF-beta 1 and plasma TGF-beta2 levels were higher in patients with prostate can cer and may be useful biomarkers of prostate cancer. Copyright 1997 by Elsevier Science Inc.