Detection of circulating prostate cells by reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction of human glandular kallikrein (hK2) and prostate-specific antigen (PSA) Messages

Abstract Objectives To investigate the clinical value of human glandular kallikrein (hK2) reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) for detection of prostate cells in circulation and to compare the results with those obtained from prostate-specific antigen (PSA) RT-PCR. Methods We examined peripheral blood (PB) and bone marrow (BM) samples of 13 patients with advanced-stage prostate cancer and 63 patients with clinically localized disease for the presence of circulating prostate cells. An RT-PCR protocol with a two-step amplification cycle and hot-start conditions was used. Results The limit of detection of the PCR portion is similar for PSA and hK2 (5 to 10 copies of the pla…