Background: In 2005, Chinnaiyan and his team made the landmark discovery that in prostate cancer, pieces of two chromosomes trade places with each
other. This switch, or translocation, causes two unrelated genes to be placed next to each other and fuse together. The abnormal gene fusion associated with prostate cancer occurs when one of two genes, ERG or ETV1, merges with a prostate- specific gene called TMPRSS2.

Before this discovery, it was thought that gene fusions only occurred in blood cancers, such as leukemias and lymphomas, but not in common solid tumors such as prostate cancer. Chinnaiyan's discovery demonstrated that these gene fusions could be found in solid tumors and has opened an entire field of research. This discovery may lead to better diagnostic tests and new treatments for prostate cancer.

Earlier this year, Chinnaiyan's team published a study about a urine test that more accurately detects prostate cancer than any other screening method currently in use. They built on the PCA3 test by screening for six additional biomarkers and some molecules. In their research, the team accurately identified 80 percent of patients who were later found to have prostate cancer, and they were 61 percent effective in ruling out disease in other study participants.

Methodology: In the current study, the team used a bioinformatics analysis method called Cancer Outlier Profile Analysis (COPA) developed by Tomlins and Daniel Rhodes, Ph.D., in Chinnaiyan's laboratory. COPA makes it possible for researchers to detect extremely high expression levels of outlier genes, or genes with characteristics outside the norm.

Using data from seven studies, they found SPINK1 was over-expressed in prostate cancer when compared to benign prostate cells, and that it was found exclusively in cancers that did not involve ERG or ETV1 gene fusions.

For more information:
U-M Comprehensive Cancer Center mcancer.org
Michigan Center for Translational Pathology www.med.umich.edu/mctp/
Prostate cancer treatment at the U-M Comprehensive Cancer Center www.cancer.med.umich.edu/cancertreat/urologiconcology/prostate_cancer.shtml
New, non-invasive prostate cancer test beats PSA cancer www2.med.umich.edu/prmc/media/newsroom/details.cfm?ID=54
National Cancer Institute prostate cancer information. www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/types/prostate
Cancer Cell www.cancercell.org/
Chinniayan's HHMI page
www.hhmi.org/research/investigators/chinnaiyan_bio.html

Patients seeking more information about currently available cancer treatments can call the Cancer AnswerLine at 800-865-1125.

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