A new study supports the use of UBC® Rapid in the follow-up of bladder cancer patients
The recently accepted scientific publication by Thorsten Ecke et.al. in the Urology Journal highlights the clinical utility of urine-based biomarkers compared to standard assays such as cystoscopy and cytology for monitoring recurrent non-invasive bladder cancer. The study aims to evaluate the performance of UBC® Rapid in identifying patients with recurrent bladder cancer who were flagged as suspicious through cystoscopy.
Recurrence of bladder cancer is common in patients who have undergone treatment. In this study, patients suspected of having recurrence based on cystoscopy were further evaluated with point-of-care tests. While cystoscopy remains the gold standard for bladder cancer follow-up, it is invasive and causes discomfort for patients. Using non-invasive biomarkers for follow-up is beneficial and might reduce the frequency of cystoscopies.
The study found that UBC® Rapid is more efficient at detecting recurrent bladder cancer compared to other point-of-care tests such as BTA stat® and NMP22®, which is consistent with previous findings. Furthermore, the clinical performance of UBC® Rapid is comparable to PCR-based Uromonitor® during the follow-up of bladder cancer patients.
“These results further strengthen the clinical applications of UBC® Rapid, not only as an aid in diagnosis but also in the surveillance of bladder cancer patients,” says Anders Hultman, CEO at AroCell.
The study includes 187 patients with suspicious cystoscopy findings during follow-up for non-muscle invasive bladder cancer (NIMBC). Out of these, 110 patients were confirmed to have bladder cancer by TUR-B (Transurethral resection), and all the point-of-care test markers were measured on these samples. The complete article's title and URL are provided below.
Performance of urinary markers in patients with suspicious cystoscopy during follow-up of recurrent non-muscle invasive bladder cancer: BTA stat®, NMP22® BladderChek®, UBC® Rapid Test, CancerCheck® UBC® rapid VISUAL, and uromonitor® in comparison to cytology.
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0090429524011130