New Assays to Offer More Comprehensive Menu for Androgen and Prostate Testing

A new fully automated Sex Hormone Binding Globulin (SHBG) immunoassay for testing plasma or serum samples on the ADVIA Centaur® platform has been developed by Siemens Healthcare Diagnostics. A free Prostate Specific Antigen (fPSA) assay for use on the ADVIA Centaur and ADVIA Centaur XP systems is also newly available.

The SHBG assay completes the fertility panel on the ADVIA Centaur family of analysers to offer a comprehensive range of testing capabilities. It provides accurate results in the evaluation of androgen disorders including virilisation, hirsutism and polycystic ovary syndrome and enables the determination of the Free Androgen Index by automatically calculating the ratio of testosterone to SHBG. The assay has a short time to first result, sound compatibility with WHO standard 95/560 and excellent within-run and between-run precision.

The ADVIA Centaur fPSA assay has been developed for use with the ADVIA Centaur Total PSA assay to assist in differentiating between prostate cancer and benign prostatic disease. Suitable for men aged 50 years and above, with total PSA values between 4 and 10 ug/L and Digital Rectal Exam (DRE) non-suspicious for cancer, the assay determines the percent free PSA value. The assay has a fast turnaround time of 18 minutes, excellent within-run precision to ensure accurate monitoring and a reagent on-board stability of 60 days.

“The ADVIA Centaur systems are the only platforms that now provide a complete choice in PSA testing with total PSA, fPSA and complexed PSA (cPSA) assays. Furthermore, the expansion of the fertility panel means we can offer a more thorough range of assays for the diagnosis of androgen disorders,” said Allan Thompson, Scientific Marketing Consultant at Siemens Healthcare Diagnostics. “The release of these two new assays, which takes the assay menu to a total of 71, demonstrates our continuing commitment to the menu expansion of the ADVIA Centaur family of analysers.”