Brothers' lives saved by home spit test that could 'turn the tide on prostate cancer'

A new spit test for prostate cancer which can be done at home may be better than current testing methods, a study suggests.

Experts have developed a simple saliva test which analyses genetic variants in a man's DNA, which appears to perform better than the current method for assessing prostate cancer risk. Currently, the prostate-specific antigen (PSA) blood test is used to check for prostate conditions, including prostate cancer or an enlarged prostate.

Routine testing is not currently available on the NHS, but patients may be offered a PSA test if a GP suspects they have prostate cancer. Men over 50 can ask their GP for a PSA test even if they do not have symptoms.

But experts have said the new saliva test could be used as an additional screening tool, as it reduced the number of false positive results and detected a higher proportion of aggressive cancers than the PSA test. It could lead to fewer men being sent for unnecessary testing, according to researchers at The Institute of Cancer Research, London, and The Royal Marsden NHS Foundation Trust.

They tested the effectiveness of a new tool they had developed called a polygenic risk score, which uses spit to assess 130 genetic variants known to be associated with an increased risk of prostate cancer, which can then determine whether or not a person is at high risk of the disease. Test saved lives of two brothers Taking part in the trial saved the lives of two brothers.

Dheeresh Turnbull said traditional methods to assess prostate cancer deemed he had a low risk of disease, but the new spit test helped the 71-year-old discover he actually had a life-threatening tumour in his prostate. After finding out the news, his brother Joel Turnbull also took part in the study and discovered he had an aggressive prostate tumour.

"It's incredible to think that because of this study two lives have now been saved in my family," Dheeresh said. Read more science and tech news:'Concerning' levels of E.coli found in ThamesWatchdog to investigate 'suicide forum'Wolf extinct for 10,000 years brought back to life How the tool was assessed The brothers were among 6,300 men aged 55 to 69 in the UK who were assessed by the tool as part of the study.

Of those, 745 (12%) were deemed to have a high risk score and were invited to have prostate cancer screening, including an MRI scan and a biopsy. Prostate cancer was detected in 187 of the 468 who took up the offer, and of those, 103 had cancer that was deemed to be "higher risk.