Prostate cancer ranks second among the causes of death of malignant tumors in middle-aged and elderly men. A considerable number of patients are not easily detected in early-stage prostate cancer. Although traditional imaging examinations are of high value in the diagnosis and staging of prostate cancer, they also have certain limitations. With the development of nuclear medicine instruments and molecular probes, molecular imaging is playing an increasingly important role in the diagnosis and treatment of prostate cancer. Positron emission tomography and computed tomography (PET/CT) using prostate-specific membrane antigen (PSMA) as a probe has gained increasing recognition. This article will review the latest progress in the application of PET/CT using probes for targeting PSMA to imaging and treatment of prostate cancer, in order to provide a theoretical basis for the application of probes for targeting PSMA in the diagnosis and treatment of prostate cancer.
Magnetic resonance (MR) imaging is an important tool for prostate cancer diagnosis, and accurate segmentation of MR prostate regions by computer-aided diagnostic techniques is important for the diagnosis of prostate cancer. In this paper, we propose an improved end-to-end three-dimensional image segmentation network using a deep learning approach to the traditional V-Net network (V-Net) network in order to provide more accurate image segmentation results. Firstly, we fused the soft attention mechanism into the traditional V-Net's jump connection, and combined short jump connection and small convolutional kernel to further improve the network segmentation accuracy. Then the prostate region was segmented using the Prostate MR Image Segmentation 2012 (PROMISE 12) challenge dataset, and the model was evaluated using the dice similarity coefficient (DSC) and Hausdorff distance (HD). The DSC and HD values of the segmented model could reach 0.903 and 3.912 mm, respectively. The experimental results show that the algorithm in this paper can provide more accurate three-dimensional segmentation results, which can accurately and efficiently segment prostate MR images and provide a reliable basis for clinical diagnosis and treatment.
Image fusion currently plays an important role in the diagnosis of prostate cancer (PCa). Selecting and developing a good image fusion algorithm is the core task of achieving image fusion, which determines whether the fusion image obtained is of good quality and can meet the actual needs of clinical application. In recent years, it has become one of the research hotspots of medical image fusion. In order to make a comprehensive study on the methods of medical image fusion, this paper reviewed the relevant literature published at home and abroad in recent years. Image fusion technologies were classified, and image fusion algorithms were divided into traditional fusion algorithms and deep learning (DL) fusion algorithms. The principles and workflow of some algorithms were analyzed and compared, their advantages and disadvantages were summarized, and relevant medical image data sets were introduced. Finally, the future development trend of medical image fusion algorithm was prospected, and the development direction of medical image fusion technology for the diagnosis of prostate cancer and other major diseases was pointed out.
Objective To investigate the application of the dynamic contrast enhanced MRI (DCE-MRI ) combined with magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS) in the diagnosis of prostate cancer. Method A total of 60 patients with prostate cancer and 60 patients with benign prostatic hyperplasia diagnoses in Sichuan Cancer Hospital from January 2011 to January 2014 were included as prostate cancer group and proliferative group respectively. Sixty healthy individuals during the same period were included as the control group. We used Siemens Avanto 1.5 T high field superconducting MRI for DCE-MRI scan and MRS scan. After the MRS scan was finished, we used the workstation spectroscopy tab spectral analysis. Eventually we got the crest lines of prostate metabolites choline (Cho), creatine (Cr) and citrate (Cit). Then we calculated Cho/Cit, (Cho+Cr)/Cit and their average. Results Comparing the signal value in 21 seconds, 1 minute, 2 minutes of DCE-MRI, the differences among the three groups were statistically significant (P<0.05). Comparing the results of spectral analysis, the differences among the three groups were statistically significant (P<0.05). The sensitivity was 89.67%, the specificity was 95.45% and the accuracy was 94.34% when using DCE-MRI combined with MRS. Conclusion DCE-MRI combined with MRS greatly improves the sensitivity, specificity and accuracy of the diagnosis of prostate cancer; it has a great application value in the diagnosis of prostate cancer.
ObjectiveTo investigate the expression of tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) in prostate cancer tissue and explore its relations with tumor angiogenesis. MethodsThe expression of TNF-α and CD105 were detected with two-step immunohistochemical staining technique in 20 cases of benign prostatic hyperplasia and 50 cases of prostate cancer between January 2010 and January 2012, and microvessel density (MVD) marked with CD105 was also measured. ResultsThe expressions of TNF-α and CD105 were higher in prostate cancer (41.72±8.67, 20.15±2.67) than those in benign prostatic hyperplasia (21.01±3.85, 4.34±1.67) (t'=13.990, P<0.001; t'=29.771, P<0.001). TNF-α and MVD were not correlated with age and size of tumor, but were positively correlated with tumor differentiation degree (rs=0.847, P<0.001; rs=0.776, P<0.001) and negatively correlated with clinical grades (rs=-0.769, P<0.001; rs=-0.842, P<0.001). ConclusionThe result indicates that over expression of TNF-α exists in prostate cancer. It may play an important role in the anginogenesis and carcinogenesis of prostate cancer.
Objective To systematically review the effectiveness and safety of radiotherapy combined with short-term or long-term hormonal therapy for prostate cancer. Methods Databases including EMbase, PubMed, Web of Science, CENTRAL and CBM were searched from inception to August 2012 to collect the randomized controlled trials (RCTs) on radiotherapy combined with short-term or long-term hormonal therapy for prostate cancer. According to the inclusion and exclusion criteria, data of the included studies were extracted, and the methodological quality was evaluated. Then meta-analysis was performed using RevMan 5.1, and the evidence qualities and recommendation levels were determined according to the GRADE System. Results A total of 6 RCTs involving 3157 patients were included. The results of meta-analysis showed that there were no significant differences in the overall survival rate (RR=0.95, 95%CI 0.91 to 1.00) and the disease-free survival rate (RR=0.73, 95%CI 0.46 to 1.13) between the radiotherapy plus short-term hormonal therapy group (the short-term group) and the radiotherapy plus long-term hormonal therapy group (the long-term group). The long-term group was superior to the short-term group in biochemical failure-free survival rate (RR=0.81, 95%CI 0.68 to 0.97), clinical progression rate (RR=1.61, 95%CI 1.44 to 1.80), and prostate cancer-specific mortality (RR=1.44, 95%CI 1.16 to 1.80). Based on the GRADE system, the evidence level of biochemical failure-free survival was moderate with a weak recommendation; the evidence level of disease-free survival was low with a weak recommendation; the evidence level of overall survival was high with a weak recommendation; and the evidence levels of clinical progression rate and prostate cancer-specific mortality were high with a b recommendation. Conclusion Currently, the limited evidence shows extending the length of hormone therapy is beneficial for patients with localized prostate cancer and locally advanced prostate cancer, especially for patients with high Gleason score, but it cannot raise overall survival rate and disease-free survival rate. This conclusion still needs to be further proved by more high-quality and large-scale RCTs.
ObjectiveTo compare the effectiveness of T2 weighted image (T2WI) and some compounded MRI techniques, including T2WI combined with magnetic resonance spectroscopy (T2WI+MRS), T2WI combined with diffusion weighted imaging (T2WI+DWI) and T2WI combined with dynamic contrast-enhancement [T2WI+(DCE-MRI)] respectively, with 1.5 T MR scanner in diagnosing prostate cancer through a blinding method. MethodsBetween March 2011 and April 2013, two observers diagnosed 59 cases with a blinding method. The research direction of radiologist A was to diagnose prostate cancer. The observers diagnosed and scored the cases with T2WI, T2WI+(DCE-MRI), T2WI+MRS, T2WI+DWI and compositive method respectively. The data were statistically analyzed with receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve. ResultsAccording to the ROC curve, both observers got the sequence of area under curve (AUC) as T2WI+DWI > T2WI+(DCE-MRI) > T2WI+MRS > T2WI. On the basis of the result from observer A, the AUC from each technique was similar. The AUC of T2+DWI was slightly bigger than others. The specificity of single T2WI was the lowest; the sensitivity of T2WI was slightly higher. The AUC of the compositive method was marginally larger than T2WI+DWI. According to the result from observer B, the AUC of T2WI+DWI was obviously larger than the others. The AUC of single T2WI was much smaller than the other techniques. The single T2WI method had the lowest sensitivity and the highest specificity. The AUC of T2WI+DWI was slightly larger than the compositive method. The AUC of T2WI+(DCE-MRI), T2WI+MRS, single T2WI methods from observer A was obviously higher than those from the score of observer B. The AUC of T2WI+DWI from the two observers was similar. ConclusionThe method of combined T2WI and functional imaging sequences can improve the diagnosing specificity when a 1.5 T MR scanner is used. T2WI+DWI is the best method in diagnosing prostate cancer with least influence from the experience of observers in this research. The compositive method can improve the diagnosis of prostate cancer effectively, but when there are contradictions between different methods, the T2WI+DWI should be considered as a key factor.
ObjectiveTo systematically review the correlation between E-cadherin expression and prostate cancer, as well as its clinicopathologic features in Chinese population. MethodsSuch databases as PubMed, EMbase, CBM, CNKI, VIP and WanFang Data were electronically searched from their inception to December, 2015 to collect case-control studies about the correlation between E-cadherin expression and prostate cancer, as well as its clinically pathologic features in Chinese population. Two reviewers independently screened literature, extracted data and assessed the risk of bias of included studies. Then, meta-analysis was performed using RevMan 5.3 software. ResultsA total of 21 studies were included, involving 920 prostate cancer cases, 415 benign prostatic hyperplasia cases, and 48 controls. The results of meta-analysis showed that the prostate cancer group had a lower E-cadherin expression level when compared with the benign prostatic hyperplasia group (OR=0.07, 95%CI 0.05 to 0.11, P<0.00001) or the control group (OR=0.04, 95%CI 0.01 to 0.18, P<0.00001). Moreover, the expression level of E-cadherin was lower in the low and medium differentiation group than in the high differentiation group (OR=0.13, 95%CI 0.08 to 0.23, P<0.00001), lower in the stage of C+D than in the stage of A+B (OR=0.23, 95%CI 0.15 to 0.34, P<0.00001), and lower in the prostate cancer with metastasis (OR=0.46, 95%CI 0.27 to 0.79, P=0.005) and it was decreased gradually with the increment of pathological differentiation and clinical stage of prostate cancer and with the decrement of lymph node or bone metastasis and serum PSA level. ConclusionCurrent evidence indicates that the expression level of E-cadherin is significantly correlated with prostate cancer and its clinicopathologic features in Chinese population. Due to limited sample size and quality of included studies, the conclusion needs to be verified by conducting more high quality studies.
ObjectivesTo systematically review the association between the variants of HNF1B gene and the risk of prostate cancer.MethodsPubMed, EMbase, The Cochrane Library, CNKI, CBM and WanFang Data databases were electronically searched to collect case-control studies on the association between the variants of HNF1B gene and risk of prostate cancer from inception to December, 2017. Two reviewers independently screened literature, extracted data and assessed the risk of bias of included studies. Meta-analysis was then performed using Stata 14.0 software.ResultsA total of 15 case-control studies involving 30 532 patients and 38 832 controls were included. The results of meta-analysis showed that: there was a strong significant association between rs4430796 variants (Gvs.A: OR=0.802, 95%CI 0.784 to 0.821, P<0.001; GGvs.AA: OR=0.659, 95%CI 0.606 to 0.717, P<0.001; AGvs.AA: OR=0.762, 95%CI 0.714 to 0.814, P<0.001), rs11649743 variants (Avs.G: OR=0.875, 95%CI 0.820 to 0.941, P<0.001; AAvs.GG: OR=0.669, 95%CI 0.564 to 0.792, P<0.001; AGvs.GG: OR=0.855, 95%CI 0.798 to 0.916, P<0.001), rs7501939 variants (Avs.G: OR=0.833, 95%CI 0.807 to 0.859, P<0.001), rs3760511 variants (Avs.C: OR=0.834, 95%CI 0.803 to 0.868, P<0.001) and risk of prostate cancer.ConclusionsCurrent evidence shows that HNF1B gene variants are associated with risk of prostate cancer. Due to limited quantity and quality of the included studies, more high quality studies are required to verify the above conclusion.
ObjectiveTo explore the feasibility of targeted cryoablation for localized prostate cancer in day surgery.MethodThe clinical data of patients with localized prostate cancer who underwent cryoablation from April 2017 to May 2019 were retrospective analyzed. The patients’ satisfaction, postoperative complications, chronic pain and indwelling catheter term were recorded on the 1st (the next day after operation) and 7th day after the operation of follow-up.ResultsA total of 98 patients were included. All patients underwent the surgeries successfully. The average age of the patients was (73.43±7.86) years old. The average length of postoperative hospital stay was (1.55±0.43) days, including 34 cases (34.69%) discharged within 24 hours after the surgery. The satisfaction rate of patients was 100% on the 1st and 7th day after the operation. Twelve cases (12.24%) removed the catheter at the discharge, 83 cases (84.69%) removed the catheter on the 7th day after the operation. Because of the urinary retention, 3 cases (3.06%) removed the catheter 2 weeks after the operation. All patients were satisfied with urine control after the removal of the catheter. Ten cases (10.20%) had postoperative complications, including 3 of urinary tract infection, 3 of urinary retention, and 4 of perineal edema; the patients recovered after symptomatic treatment. On the day of surgery, 8 cases (8.16%) had slight postoperative pain in perineal (the Visual Analogue Scale scores were all 2). After oral analgesic treatment, the patients’ symptoms were alleviated.ConclusionTargeted cryoablation is a safe and effective method for the treatment of localized prostate cancer with a low incidence of postoperative complications, and it has certain feasibility in day surgery mode.