Enzyme with links to aggressive prostate cancer discovered

A new study has made a breakthrough in prostate cancer research by identifying an enzyme with specific links to aggressive forms of the disease.

By investigating publicly available databases containing data on molecules that are upregulated- irregularly switched on – in cancer, the team from Mayo Clinic's campus in Florida found a link between the enzyme PRSS3 and prostate cancer.

It has been suggested that PRSS3 activity changes the environment around prostate cancer cells to promote malignancy and invasiveness, with a definitive trend of increasing PRSS3 expression with cancer progression seen.

Moreover, researchers were able to develop a  compound that can potentially inhibit the ability of this molecule to promote the metastatic spread of the cancer.

Senior investigator Dr Evette Radisky, a cancer biologist in the Mayo Clinic Cancer Center, said: "I don't think PRSS3 is the only factor involved in driving aggressive prostate cancer, but it may be significant for a certain subset of this cancer – the kind that is potentially lethal."

Prostate cancer is the most common cancer among UK males, with around 36,000 people being diagnosed with the disease each year.