HEIDELBERG, Germany, February 28 /PRNewswire/ -- The Heidelberg Clinic for Prostate Therapy is specialized exclusively on conservative prostate therapy methods. Using a completely new type of diagnosis which avoids the risk of malignant cells metastasizing in the body, a further successful step was taken towards a broad and conservative prostate therapy.

Prostate cancer is the most common cancer type for men, with 58,570 cases. Doctors recommend an annual preventive check-up of the prostate, including digital rectal examination, urine analysis, sonography of the bladder and kidneys and PSA analysis; PSA is the acronym for "prostate-specific antigen" and is now the most important marker in urology. A raised PSA count could be an indication of a tumor.

The accuracy of prostate biopsy is, however, relatively low and is associated with clear risks. Three or more punch biopsies, which take up to 30 punch samples from the prostate, are often required for the diagnosis of a prostate carcinoma. This could result in bacterial invasion of the blood flow which could in turn cause life-threatening blood poisoning. If a prostate carcinoma is hit with the biopsy needle, there is a danger of spreading the tumor cells. In addition, the so-called cytokines, which could promote growth and metastasizing of the prostate carcinoma, could be released. Nowadays, the clinic for prostate therapy uses special non-invasive investigation methods which make prostate biopsy unnecessary. This helps avoid both the negative effects of a biopsy and false negative findings.

Using the most up-to-date laboratory procedures, circulating prostate cells can be identified in the blood stream after taking just a simple blood sample. The procedure is based on the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) principle. Not only can Heidelberg diagnose the presence of cancer cells, but also their number and characteristics.

The biopsy-free, gentle methods of diagnosis are complemented by a urine proteome analysis, which subjects urine to a special spectroscopic process. If certain proteins are identified, these are an additional strong indication of a prostate tumor. Elastography, a new type of ultrasonic diagnostic procedure, is also creating great expectations.

If prostate cancer is diagnosed, it can be treated using the High Intensity Focused Ultrasound (HIFU) method, gently and without invasive surgery.

http://www.prostata-therapie.de

Klinik für Prostata-Therapie, Brückenkopfstr. 1-2, D-69120 Heidelberg, Phone +49(0)6221-409022, Fax +49(0)6221-409033, E-mail: Dr.Deuster@prostata-therapie.de; Press contact: info@pressekontakt.com

Klinik für Prostata-Therapie, Brückenkopfstr. 1-2, D-69120 Heidelberg, Phone +49(0)6221-409022, Fax +49(0)6221-409033, E-mail: Dr.Deuster@prostata-therapie.de; Press contact: info@pressekontakt.com.