ABSTRACT

Prostatic adenocarcinomas are especially prevalent in the Western nations and the fact that few standardized tests exist that can be of help to the clinician in deciding to commit a patient with a newly-diagnosed low grade prostate adenocarcinoma to either an active surveillance modality or a radical prostatectomy has caused an over reliance on radical treatments, therefore increasing both patient morbidity and economic burden.

The application of ever more sophisticated molecular techniques in the field of prostate cancer pathogenesis has resulted in the discovery of many new targets that could be of utility in the diagnosis, treatment and post-treatment follow-up of prostate tumors. Unfortunately, few of these discoveries are yet of sufficient maturity to be useful in a clinical setting. There is a current need to adapt these findings to new clinical tests useful in especially deciding between active surveillance and radical treatment.

The purpose of this review is to familiarize the practicing urologist and pathologists regarding recent developments in the field of prostate cancer pathogenesis, and to comment on a number of up-and-coming molecular targets, genetic changes and test modalities that can be of use in the management of prostate cancer.