Clinical use of prostate-specific antigen and prostate-specific antigen density in the staging of patients with cancer of the prostate.

OBJECTIVE

To examine the efficacy of prostate-specific antigen (PSA) and prostate-specific antigen density (PSAD) in staging patients undergoing radical prostatectomy for clinically localized prostate cancer (CaP).

PATIENTS AND METHODS

Prostate gland volumes were estimated in patients with clinically localized CaP (n = 119) performing transrectal ultrasound and employing the prolate ellipse formula. PSA was determined using an enzyme immunoassay. All patients underwent laparoscopic pelvic lymphadenectomy followed by radical perineal prostatectomy in No disease. The PSA density was calculated relating the Serum PSA to the sonographically estimated prostate volume.

RESULTS

The pathological examination of the prostatectomy specimens revealed a pT2 tumor in 52 cases (43.7%) and a pT3 tumor in 41 cases (34.5%). In 26 patients (21.8%) the histological examination demonstrated metastases to the lymph nodes. Patients with a pT2No CaP demonstrated a median PSA level of 8.95 ng/ml and a median PSAD of 0.3, those with a pT3No CaP demonstrated a median PSA level of 12.3 ng/ml and a median PSAD of 0.38 and those with a T2-3pN + revealed a median PSA level of 22.9 ng/ml and a median PSAD of 0.7.

CONCLUSIONS

Both marker, serum PSA as well as PSAD, did not sufficiently distinguish patients with organ-confined cancer from those with extracapsular tumor extension. In contrast, PSAD levels seem to provide useful additional information in the staging of patients with clinically localized CaP with regard to the lymph node status.