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Routine diagnostic analyses of mutations in cell-free DNA in patients with metastatic prostate cancer are now possible for the first time in Sweden. The test has been developed by researchers at Karolinska Institutet, and Karolinska University Hospital is now offering the analysis to hospitals around the Nordic region, giving more patients with certain gene mutations access to the cancer treatment they need.

Prostate cancer is a major global health concern and is the most common cancer-related cause of death in Sweden. Prostate cancer screening using PSA reduces prostate cancer mortality but also leads to significant overdiagnosis and overtreatment of low-risk cancers. The pathological evaluation of prostate biopsies determines the therapeutic course of treatment for prostate cancer patients.

Prostate cancer constitutes an essential public health issue, as it is a major cause of male deaths. Early detection through an organised testing program with the prostate-specific antigen (PSA) test and systematic biopsy is not in place in most countries due to the risk of over-diagnosis and over-treatment of low-risk cancers. Now there are two proposed approaches to tackle this problem; magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and the serum-based reflex test “Stockholm3”.

Associate Professor Tobias Nordström is awarded the European Association of Urology (EAU) "Prostate Cancer Research Award 2022" for the Stockholm3-test, a blood test that in a better way can identify men who have an increased risk for prostate cancer.

5-alpha-reductase inhibitors (5-ARIs), Finasteride and Dutasteride, are commonly used to treat lower urinary symptoms in older men with benign prostate hyperplasia. There has long been concern that these drugs may increase the risk of more aggressive forms of prostate cancer. In a new study recently published in JAMA Oncology, researchers at Karolinska Institutet found no increased risk of dying from prostate cancer for men treated with the drugs and lower risk with longer treatment duration.

The combination of a novel blood test and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) can reduce overdiagnosis of low-risk cancers as well as societal costs in prostate cancer screening, according to a cost-effectiveness study from Karolinska Institutet published in the journal European Urology. The results provide support for organised prostate cancer testing in Sweden, researchers say.

KI researchers have together with international collaborators completed a comprehensive international validation of artificial intelligence (AI) for diagnosing and grading prostate cancer. The study, published in Nature Medicine, shows that AI systems can identify and grade prostate cancer in tissue samples from different countries equally well as pathologists. The results suggest AI systems are ready to be responsibly introduced as a complementary tool in prostate cancer care, researchers say.

The research committee at the Swedish Cancer Society has just named Henrik Grönberg “Cancer Researcher of the Year 2022” for his efforts in prostate cancer research. Henrik Grönberg’s research has contributed to earlier detection of prostate cancer and that unnecessary examinations can be avoided.

Researchers at Karolinska Institutet recently reported that magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) could reduce overdiagnoses and thereby improve prostate cancer screening. Now, the same research group has published a study in The Lancet Oncology, which shows that the addition of a novel blood test, the Stockholm3 test, can reduce the number of MRIs performed by a third while further preventing the detection of minor, low-risk tumours.

Most countries have not introduced nationwide prostate-cancer screening, as current methods result in overdiagnoses and excessive and unnecessary biopsies. A new study by researchers at Karolinska Institutet in Sweden, which is published in The New England Journal of Medicine, indicates that screening by magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and targeted biopsies could potentially cut overdiagnoses by half. The results are presented today at the European Association of Urology Congress.

The standard treatment for advanced metastatic prostate cancer (PCa) is androgen deprivation therapy (ADT). And even if this is efficient in the short term, 1/3 of PCa will become resistant to ADT and develop castration-resistant prostate cancer. A new study, by Karolinska Institutet and others, shows that estrogen receptor β (ERβ) agonists together with ADT could be considered useful in the treatment.

A comprehensive comparison of cancer survival between the Nordic countries shows improvements for all countries over time with previously observed differences attenuated. The reasons for these improvements are likely multifactorial. Previous studies comparing cancer survival between the Nordic countries have found marked differences, with a notably poorer survival in Danish patients.

The objective of Peter's thesis is to develop and improve technologies for prostate cancer diagnostics and to acquire knowledge related to these technologies that directly translate to clinical utility.

Researchers at Karolinska Institutet have developed a method based on artificial intelligence for histopathological diagnosis and grading of prostate cancer. The AI-system has the potential to solve one of the bottlenecks in today’s prostate cancer histopathology by providing more accurate diagnosis and better treatment decisions. The study, presented in The Lancet Oncology, shows that the AI-system is as good at identifying and grading prostate cancer as world-leading uro-pathologists.

Title: Risk prediction in prostate cancer diagnostics : current challenges and improvements

Researchers at Karolinska Institutet in Sweden have identified blood-based biomarkers that may determine which patients will benefit from continued hormonal therapy for advanced prostate cancer. The results are published in the journal JAMA Oncology. The researchers envision that this discovery may eventually result in a test that contributes to a more personalised treatment of the disease.