Skeletal alkaline phosphatase: a marker for individual follow-up in patients with advanced prostatic cancer

Skeletal alkaline phosphatase (sAP) is a tumor marker indicating osseous metastases, e.g. of prostate cancer. Sera of healthy men and patients with benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH), localized and advanced prostatic cancer (PCa) were analyzed with Tandem-R-Ostase and prostate-specific antigen (PSA). No significant differences were found in sAP levels between healthy men and patients with BPH and localized PCa, but there was a significant difference with the group of patients with advanced PCa. In some cases, the individual follow-up was better and earlier with sAP compared to PSA. It is possible to discriminate between localized and advanced PCa with sAP. The individual follow-up shows in 30% of patients with advanced PCa an earlier increase in sAP, compared to PSA, during progression of disease.