Inventors:
Robert W Veltri - Oklahoma City OK
Michael P. Bacus - Edmond OK
M. Craig Miller - Guthrie OK
Kaveh Ashenayi - Tulsa OK
Donald P. Coffey - Lutherville MD
Alan W. Partin - Baltimore MD
Jonathan I. Epstein - Baltimore MD
Assignee:
The University of Tulsa - Tulsa OK
John Hopkins University - Baltimore MD
Cytodiagnostics, Inc. - Oklahoma City OK
International Classification:
G01N 33574, C12Q 168
Abstract:
A method for screening individuals at risk for prostate cancer progression is disclosed. The method is useful for evaluating cells from patients at risk for recurrence of prostate cancer following surgery for prostate cancer. Specifically, the method uses specific Markovian nuclear texture factors, alone or in combination with other biomarkers, to determine whether the cancer will progress or lose organ confinement. In addition, methods of predicting the development of fatal metastatic disease by statistical analysis of selected biomarkers is also disclosed. The invention also contemplates a method that uses a neural network to analyze and interpret cell morphology data. Utilizing Markovian factors and other biomarkers as parameters, the network is first trained with a sets of cell data from known progressors and known non-progressors. The trained network is then used to predict prostate cancer progression in patient samples.