PSA-Schnelltest

Prostate cancer is one of the most common cancers in men. The incidence of prostate cancer increases with age, leading to a growing number of newly diagnosed patients. The prostate-specific antigen is mainly produced in the prostate gland and released into the vas deferens. It serves in the ejaculation as liquefaction of sperm coagulum. To a certain extent, all healthy men under the age of 50 have a PSA level below 4 ng / ml. When the PSA level rises above 20 ng / ml, the patient most likely suffers from prostate cancer. Some studies show that elevated total levels of PSA are found in patients with metastatic prostate cancer cells distributed throughout the body. Other studies have shown that free PSA that does not complex with serine protease tends to be more common in patients with benign prostatic hyperplasia. The PSA rapid test uses antibodies that can recognize both free and bound PSA act.

The PSA rapid test is a sandwich immunoassay. When the serum sample is placed in the sample port, it travels through the conjugate area mobilizing the gold anti-PSA conjugate applied in the conjugate area. The mixture migrates along the membrane due to capillary forces and reacts with the anti-PSA antibody fixed in the region of the test region. If PSA is present in the sample, this results in the formation of a colored band in the test region. The intensity of the staining depends on the concentration of PSA in the sample. On the other hand, in the control region, a slight colored band will arise. This control band serves as a reference band of 4.0 ng / ml PSA.