Cross-comparison of PSA and PAP values in a wide spectrum of prostate cancer conditions.

Serum PAP, PSA, and testosterone values were measured in 101 men with prostatic nodule. In 71 patients prostatic cancer was detected and in 62 of those patients monitoring studies of the same parameters were assessed on 153 sera by applying a radioimmunodetective procedure. The PSA test, when compared to PAP values, offers significantly greater sensitivity towards small tumor burdens in early stages of the disease, and enables, in some cases, the prediction of tumor recurrence before clinical symptoms have been manifested. The results of this study indicate that the addition of the PSA assessment to the standard protocol of prostate cancer diagnosis and treatment, either alone or together with PAP in a double-marker assay, is promising for more accurate staging and monitoring of patients with prostatic tumors.