Variation in prostate cancer growth rates in an MRI-based active surveillance cohort
Question What is the population distribution of growth rates and the natural history of prostate cancer? Findings Prostate cancer typically grows slowly, with considerable variation between individuals. On average, lesions take 17 years to grow from initiation to an MRI-detectable size. Clinical relevance Small lesions undetectable on MRI may take many years to reach a clinically significant size, posing a challenge for early detection, as it increases the risk of detecting indolent lesions that may never cause harm.
Authors
- Caroline M. Moore (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0202-7912)
- Helen Smith (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4243-809X)
- Bharath Narayanan
- Nora Pashayan
- Mark Emberton
- Francesco Giganti
- Vasilis Stavrinides
Institutions
- Cedars-Sinai Medical Center (US)
- University College London Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust (GB)
- Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust (GB)
- University of Cambridge (GB)
- Faculty (United Kingdom) (GB)
- CRUK Lung Cancer Centre of Excellence (GB)
- University College London (GB)
Publication Details
- Journal
- European Radiology
- Published
- 2026-01-16
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1007/s00330-025-12248-y
- Citations
- 1
- Primary Topic
- Prostate Cancer Diagnosis and Treatment
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 36.44
Funders
- Prostate Cancer Foundation
- Oregon Health and Science University
- Movember Foundation
- Wellcome Trust
- UK Research and Innovation
- Cancer Research UK
- National Institute for Health and Care Research
- University College London
- Prostate Cancer UK
- University College London Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust
- Knight Cancer Institute, Oregon Health and Science University
- Medical Research Council
- UCLH Biomedical Research Centre