Prostate-Specific Antigen (PSA) testing paired with traditional biopsies allows medical personnel to identify several tiny low-risk tumors. However, the process has hampered the implementation of statewide prostate cancer screening. Although MRI has been found to prevent overdiagnosis, limited health resources make it challenging to use.
New cost-effective research might be of significance in this regard. It demonstrated that combining a novel blood test with MRI (Magnetic Resonance Imaging) can reduce overdiagnosis of low-risk tumors and societal expenditures in prostate cancer screening. The findings are highly relevant for
Prostrate Cancer Diagnostics Market as they could help patients suffering from the disease get better and more effective care.
The STHLM3MRI experiment previously demonstrated that a blood test called Stockholm3 could reduce the number of MRIs for a single screening occasion by a third. The same study group finds that an MRI-based screening combination is likewise cost-effective in Sweden compared to screening and PSA testing.
The team's most recent findings suggest that adopting Stockholm3 could reduce the number of MRIs by 60% over the course of a lifetime."This minimizes the overdiagnosis of low-risk tumors by 9% by avoiding needless biopsies.
In comparison to no screening at all, MRI-based screening paired with PSA or Stockholm3 was anticipated to prevent prostate cancer-related mortality by 7–9% over a lifetime. Screening with PSA followed by Stockholm3 and MRI in high-risk adults is classed as a modest cost per QALY (Quality-Adjusted Life-Year) gained compared to no screening. Furthermore, compared to Stockholm3 combined with MRI, PSA combined with MRI has a very high cost per QALY gained.
This is an intriguing treatment option for prostate cancer. This innovative combination with Stockholm3 can save healthcare resources and lower societal expenses. Further, it could also ensure the health benefits of early prostate cancer identification.
The evidence provided by researchers supports the use of Stockholm3 as a supplement to MRI-based screening. This could even be tested in one of the OPT pilots.
Although the current health economic evaluation is limited to Sweden, the simulation model employed in this work is open source. It may easily be extended to evaluate the use of Stockholm3 and MRI in other countries. The Stockholm3 test is currently accessible for clinical usage in Germany, Finland, Denmark, Norway, Spain, and Sweden, with more European nations to follow in 2022.
