Diagnostic significance of miR‐21, miR‐141, miR‐18a and miR‐221 as novel biomarkers in prostate cancer among Egyptian patients

Abstract

Prostate cancer (PC) is considered as the fifth cause of cancer deaths worldwide. The exact etiopathogenesis is unclear; however, genetic predisposition, hormonal influencers, lifestyle and environmental factors act as major contributors. It has been found that several miRNAs may play a crucial role in cancer initiation and progression. Here, in this study, we evaluated the peripheral blood levels of miR‐21, miR‐141, miR‐221 and miR‐18a expression among 80 prostate cancer patients (50 localised and 30 metastatic) and 30 benign prostatic hyperplasia patients compared to 50 normal control subjects, using RT‐PCR. Our results of analysis of miR‐21, miR‐141, miR‐18a and miR‐221 in the plasma of PC patients showed that miR‐18a is a powerful discriminator of PC patients from healthy controls as it had the highest AUC (0.966; 95% CI, 0.937–1.000), while miR‐221 provided better differentiation of metastatic from localised PC (sensitivity was 92.9% at 100% specificity), and when we combine miR‐18a and miR‐221 for differentiating patients with MPC, it will increase the sensitivity to 96.4% at a specificity of 100% (AUC, 0.997; 95% CI, 0.988–1.0) (p < .000). This current study recommends that analysis of these miRNAs might have clinical value in enhancing PSA testing.