There are bugs in your urine, here's what you should know

Scientists have identified bacteria found in urine which could be linked to prostate cancer. The team is hopeful this new discovery would be helpful in spotting early signs of the disease and preventing it from spreading. They have however cautioned that this urine bacteria might just be a helpful marker of the presence of the disease and not a cause.

Urine bacterial test

This new research by scientists at the University of East Anglia requires further investigation to determine if clearing the bacterial infection with antibiotics might prevent bad tumours.

It has widely been established that some bacterial infections play significant roles in the development of other cancers such as stomach cancers which can be triggered by the bug H. pylori. Dr Rachel Hurst, one of the research team, said:

Among the things we don't yet know is how people pick up these bacteria, whether they are causing the cancer, or whether a poor immune response permits the growth of the bacteria.

Prostate cancer

It is estimated that one in eight men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer, it is hardly life-threatening with a 100% survival rate if detected early. The study, published in the journal, European Urology Oncology, identified five types of bacteria common in urine and tissue samples from men whose prostate cancers developed aggressively. The bugs were found to survive without oxygen, with some being brand-new discoveries. Dr Hurst said:

...we hope that our findings and future work could lead to new treatment options, that could slow or prevent aggressive prostate cancer from developing. Our work could also lay the foundations for new tests that use bacteria to predict the most effective treatment for each man's cancer.

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