Bay Biosciences provides high quality, clinical grade, tumor tissue samples, FFPE blocks with matched cryogenically preserved K2EDTA plasma, sera (serum) and peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) biofluid samples from prostate cancer patients.
The K2EDTA plasma, sera (serum) and PBMC biofluid specimens are processed from prostate cancer patient’s peripheral whole-blood using customized collection and processing protocols.
Prostate cancer tumor tissue and matched biofluid samples are collected from unique patients diagnosed with prostate cancer and are provided to a valued pharmaceutical customer for research, diagnostics, discovery and drug development.
Prostate Cancer Overview
Prostate cancer is a common type of cancer in males, but it is highly treatable in the early stages. It begins in the prostate gland, which sits between the penis and the bladder.
The prostate gland is a walnut-sized gland present only in men, found in the pelvis below the bladder. Prostate gland wraps around the urethra (the tube through which urine exits the body) and lies in front of the rectum.
The prostate gland secretes part of the liquid portion of the semen, or seminal fluid, which carries sperm made by the testes. The fluid is essential to reproduction.
The prostate has various functions. These include producing the fluid that nourishes and transports sperm, secreting prostate-specific antigen (PSA), a protein that helps semen retain its liquid state, and helping aid urine control.
Other than skin cancer, prostate cancer is the most common cancer affecting males in the United States. The American Cancer Society (ACS) predicts that in 2022 there will be around 268,490 new diagnoses of prostate cancer and approximately 34,500 deaths from this type of cancer.
Around 1 in 8 males will receive a diagnosis of prostate cancer at some point in their life. However, only 1 in 41 of these will die as a result. This is because treatment is effective, especially in the early stages. Routine screening enables doctors to detect many cases of prostate cancer before they spread.
Prostate cancer is comprised nearly always of adenocarcinoma cells, these cells arise from glandular tissue. Cancer cells are named according to the organ in which they originate no matter where in the body we find such cells. Thus, if prostate cancer cells spread in the body to the bones, it is not then called bone cancer. It is known as prostate cancer metastatic to the bones.
Metastasis is the process of cancer spreading through the blood or lymphatic system to other organs/areas throughout the body. Prostate cancer more commonly metastasizes to lymph nodes in the pelvis and to the bones.
Types of Prostate Cancer
The most common type of prostate cancer is adenocarcinoma. More than 95% of prostate cancers are adenocarcinomas. If you have prostate cancer, it’s almost certainly this type. There are several other forms of prostate cancer that are extremely rare.
Different types of prostate cancer start in different cells. Doctors analyze the prostate tissue in a lab to see what kinds of cells have cancer in them. This pathology information along with the stage and the grade help decide how to treat the prostate cancer.
These cancers start in the gland cells of the prostate. Gland cells make prostate fluid. This fluid combines with sperm to make semen.
When cancer is found in these cells, the patient could have one of the following two types of prostate cancer:
Acinar Adenocarcinoma: Most patients get this type of prostate cancer. It develops in the gland cells that line the prostate gland.
Ductal Adenocarcinoma: This type of prostate cancer starts in the cells that line the ducts (or tubes) of the prostate gland. It’s usually more aggressive than the other type. That means it grows and spreads more quickly.
Other Rare Forms of Prostate Cancer
Transitional Cell (or urothelial) Cancer: This cancer grows in the urethra. That’s the tube that carries urine outside the body. It’s unclear how often it starts in the prostate and spreads here. Most often, it starts in the bladder before it spreads.
Signs and Symptoms of Prostate Cancer
There are often no symptoms during the early stages of prostate cancer, but screening can detect changes that may indicate cancer. Screening involves a test that measures levels of PSA in the blood. High levels suggest that cancer may be present.
Prostate cancer patients who do experience symptoms may notice the following symptoms:
- A weak or interrupted flow of urine stream
- Pain in the back, hips or pelvis that is persistant
- Blood in the urine or semen
- Difficulty starting and maintaining urination
- Erectile dysfunction
- Fatigue
- Frequent urge to urinate, especially at night
- Painful urination or ejaculation
- Trouble emptying the bladder completely
Advanced Symptoms of Prostate Cancer
Patients with advanced prostate cancer may also show no symptoms. Potential signs will depend on the size of the cancer and where it has spread in the body. In addition to the above, advanced prostate cancer can involve the following symptoms:
- Bone pain
- Tiredness
- Unexplained weight loss
Causes of Prostate Cancer
Exact causes why prostate cancer develops is unknown.
Doctors know that prostate cancer begins when cells in the prostate develop changes in their DNA. A cell’s DNA contains the instructions that tell a cell what to do. The changes tell the cells to grow and divide more rapidly than normal cells do. The abnormal cells continue living, when other cells would die.
The accumulating abnormal cells form a tumor that can grow to invade nearby tissue. In time, some abnormal cells can break away and spread (metastasize) to other parts of the body.
Diagnosis of Prostate Cancer
If a patient has symptoms that may indicate prostate cancer, a doctor will inquire:
- Patient’s symptoms
- Personal and medical history
- Conduct a blood test to assess PSA levels
- Carry out a urine test to look for other biomarkers
- Order a physical examination, which may include a digital rectal exam (DRE)
During a DRE, the doctor will check manually for any abnormalities of the prostate with their finger.
Additional Tests
If a doctor suspects prostate cancer, they may recommend further tests, such as the following:
- PCA3 Test: This looks for the PCA3 gene in the urine.
- Transrectal ultrasound: This involves inserting a probe with a camera into the rectum.
- Biopsy: A doctor will take a tissue sample for examination under a microscope.
Only a biopsy can confirm the presence and type of cancer. A person who needs monitoring rather than treatment may need a routine Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) or Computerized Tomography (CT) Scan.
Risk Factors of Prostate Cancer
Following factors can increase the risk of prostate cancer:
- Older age: Your risk of prostate cancer increases as you age. It’s most common after age 50.
- Race: For reasons unknown, Black patients have a greater risk of prostate cancer than do patients of other races. In Black individuals, prostate cancer is also more likely to be aggressive or advanced.
- Family history: If a blood relative, such as a parent, sibling or child, has been diagnosed with prostate cancer, your risk may be increased. Also, if you have a family history of genes that increase the risk of breast cancer (BRCA1 or BRCA2) or a very strong family history of breast cancer, your risk of prostate cancer may be higher.
- Obesity: Patients who are obese may have a higher risk of prostate cancer compared with individuals considered to have a healthy weight, though studies have had mixed results. In obese patients, the cancer is more likely to be more aggressive and more likely to return after initial treatment.
Complications of Prostate Cancer
Complications of prostate cancer and its treatments include the following:
- Cancers those spreads (metastasizes): Prostate cancer can spread to nearby organs, such as the bladder, or travel through your bloodstream or lymphatic system to your bones or other organs. Prostate cancer that spreads to the bones can cause pain and broken bones. Once prostate cancer has spread to other areas of the body, it may still respond to treatment and may be controlled, but it’s unlikely to be cured.
- Incontinence: Both prostate cancer and its treatment can cause urinary incontinence. Treatment for incontinence depends on the type of cancer you have; how severe it is and the likelihood it will improve over time. Treatment options may include medications, catheters and surgery.
- Erectile dysfunction: Erectile dysfunction can result from prostate cancer or its treatment, including surgery, radiation or hormone treatments. Medications, vacuum devices that assist in achieving erection and surgery are available to treat erectile dysfunction.
Prevention of Prostate Cancer
To reduce the risk of prostate cancer the following are recommended:
- Choose a healthy diet full of fruits and vegetables: Eat a variety of fruits, vegetables and whole grains. Fruits and vegetables contain many vitamins and nutrients that can contribute to your health.Whether you can prevent prostate cancer through diet has yet to be conclusively proved. But eating a healthy diet with a variety of fruits and vegetables can improve your overall health.
- Choosing healthy foods over supplements: Choose foods that are rich in vitamins and minerals so that you can maintain healthy levels of vitamins in your body. No studies have shown that supplements play a role in reducing the risk of prostate cancer.
- Exercising most days of the week: Exercise improves your overall health; helps you maintain your weight and improves your mood. Try to exercise most days of the week. If you’re new to exercise, start slow and work your way up to more exercise time each day.
- Maintaining a healthy weight: If your current weight is healthy, work to maintain it by choosing a healthy diet and exercising most days of the week. If you need to lose weight, add more exercise and reduce the number of calories you eat each day. Ask your doctor for help creating a plan for healthy weight loss.
- Discuss with your doctor about increased risk of prostate cancer: If you have a very high risk of prostate cancer, you and your doctor may consider medications or other treatments to reduce the risk. Some studies suggest that taking 5-alpha reductase inhibitors, including finasteride (Propecia, Proscar) and dutasteride (Avodart), may reduce the overall risk of developing prostate cancer. These drugs are used to control prostate gland enlargement and hair loss.However, some evidence indicates that patients taking these medications may have an increased risk of getting a more serious form of prostate cancer (high-grade prostate cancer). If you’re concerned about your risk of developing prostate cancer, talk with your doctor.
Bay Biosciences is a global leader in providing researchers with high quality, clinical grade, fully characterized human tissue samples, bio-specimens, and human bio-fluid collections.
Samples available include cancer (tumor) tissue, cancer serum, cancer plasma, cancer, peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC). and human tissue samples from most other therapeutic areas and diseases.
Bay Biosciences maintains and manages its own biorepository, the human tissue bank (biobank) consisting of thousands of diseased samples (specimens) and from normal healthy donors available in all formats and types.
Our biobank procures and stores fully consented, deidentified and institutional review boards (IRB) approved human tissue samples and matched controls.
All our human tissue collections, human specimens and human bio-fluids are provided with detailed, samples associated patient’s clinical data.
This critical patient’s clinical data includes information relating to their past and current disease, treatment history, lifestyle choices, biomarkers, and genetic information.
Patient’s data is extremely valuable for researchers and is used to help identify new effective treatments (drug discovery & development) in oncology, and other therapeutic areas and diseases.
Bay Biosciences banks wide variety of human tissue samples and biological samples, including cryogenically preserved at – 80°C.
Including fresh frozen tissue samples, tumor tissue samples, formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded (FFPE), tissue slides, with matching human bio-fluids, whole blood and blood-derived products such as serum, plasma and PBMC.
Bay Biosciences is a global leader in collecting and providing human tissue samples according to the specified requirements and customized, tailor-made collection protocols.
Please contact us anytime to discuss your special research projects and customized human tissue sample requirements.
Bay Biosciences provides human tissue samples (human specimens) from diseased and normal healthy donors which includes:
- Peripheral whole-blood
- Amniotic fluid
- Bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BAL)
- Sputum
- Pleural effusion
- Cerebrospinal fluid (CSF)
- Serum (sera)
- Plasma
- Peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC)
- Saliva
- Buffy coat
- Urine
- Stool samples
- Aqueous humor
- Vitreous humor
- Kidney stones (renal calculi)
- Other bodily fluids from most diseases including cancer.
We can also procure most human bio-specimens, special collections and requests for human samples that are difficult to find. All our human tissue samples are procured through IRB-approved clinical protocols and procedures.
In addition to the standard processing protocols, Bay Biosciences can also provide human plasma, serum, and PBMC bio-fluid samples using custom processing protocols; you buy donor-specific collections in higher volumes and specified sample aliquots from us.
Bay Biosciences also provides human samples from normal healthy donors; volunteers, for controls and clinical research, contact us Now.
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