A chemistry researcher from Keele University has secured funding from a national charity for a new study which aims to improve diagnosis and testing for men at risk of prostate cancer. 

The project, led by Dr Sarah Gosling, has been funded by Prostate Cancer UK, and aims to improve the accuracy with which doctors can test for unusual changes in prostate tissue which could be an indicator of cancer risk. 

The researchers will specifically look at testing for high grade intraepithelial neoplasia (HGPIN), a term which describes abnormal changes in cells lining the prostate.  

Although this condition itself is not the same as prostate cancer, it does have the potential to progress into prostate cancer with 1 in 4 cases of HGPIN estimated to develop into cancer. 

Currently, clinicians cannot tell which HGPIN cases will develop into cancer, meaning patients with HGPIN are monitored using prostate specific antigen (PSA) blood tests or repeated biopsies, potentially for the rest of their lives, which can cause distress and worry. 

The researchers hope to change this by identifying the markers which can indicate whether someone is at risk, therefore enabling early detection of cancer in those patients, and reducing the need for repeated or invasive testing in others. 

The study aims to understand the building blocks of prostate tissue to determine how early prostate disease and cancer develop and progress, with the team using a technique called “X-ray diffraction”, which involves hitting a material with X-rays to study how the rays scatter upon impact, thereby revealing details about the structure of the material. This technique can therefore be used to study the tiniest, most intricate details of prostate tissue that might reveal any differences which could indicate why HGPIN cases do or do not develop into cancer. 

Lead researcher Dr Sarah Gosling, a Postdoctoral Research Associate in the School of Chemical and Physical Sciences, said: “As cancer becomes more common, especially as people get older, it's increasingly important to find better ways to detect it early and predict how it might progress. It is crucial to balance the risk of patients developing cancer with their quality of life, by finding new ways to determine which patients might need treatment.  

“Our project will provide a new way to understand how cancer starts, with the work aiming to find new markers in tissue that can tell us how serious a HGPIN diagnosis might be and if cancer might form. Eventually, we hope this will help doctors and patients to decide on the best treatment plans. This work is not just about developing better tests, but also giving people more information to make decisions about their health.” 

Simon Grieveson, Assistant Director of Research at Prostate Cancer UK, said: “Not being able to tell whether their condition will develop into prostate cancer can be extremely distressing for men with HGPIN. Early detection of aggressive prostate cancer is absolutely critical and so this is a serious problem that we need to address. 

“At Prostate Cancer UK, we are determined to fund research that will improve the accuracy of diagnosis and the effectiveness of treatments, to ultimately improve men’s lives. By looking at how cancer develops, this research could identify why certain men with HGPIN go on to develop prostate cancer and why others do not. 

"We’re excited to be funding Dr Gosling’s work via our Career Acceleration Fellowships, and to be supporting the prostate cancer research efforts in the Midlands. This is especially important to us, as 8030 men are diagnosed with prostate cancer each year in the Midlands, with more than 1 in 5 of these men diagnosed after their disease has spread and can't be cured. We eagerly look forward to seeing how Dr Gosling’s research progresses over the coming years and how it may contribute towards achieving more accurate and earlier diagnosis of prostate cancer.”

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