Engrailed Homeobox Protein 2 (EN2)

Prostate cancer (PC) is the second most common cause of cancer related death in men. A number of key limitations with prostate specific antigen (PSA), currently the standard detection test, has justified evaluation of new biomarkers.Engrailed-2 (EN2) protein, a homeodomain-containing transcription factor expressed in PC cell lines and secreted into the urine by PC in men. EN2 was expressed and secreted by PC cell lines and PC tissue but not by normal prostate tissue or stroma. The presence of EN2 in urine was highly predictive of PC, with a sensitivity of 66% and a specificity of 88.2%, without requirement for DRE. There was no correlation with PSA levels.Urinary EN2 is a highly specific and sensitive candidate biomarker of prostate cancer.