Prostate Cancer – Henrik Grönberg's research group

Main research area is prostate cancer genetics focusing on identifying new markers both for the risk of getting prostate cancer and for the prognosis of prostate cancer once diagnosed.

The ProBio study

Currently the main focus of the research group is the ProBio study. ProBio is an outcome-adaptive and randomised multi-arm biomarker driven study in patients with metastatic prostate cancer. 

The lack of treatment-predictive biomarkers is an unmet clinical need in metastatic prostate cancer leading to inferior clinical outcomes, overtreatment and accelerating costs. The ProBio concept builds on a novel adaptive study design and prospectively evaluates treatment predictive biomarker signatures in a large network of 35 study centers in Europe. 

By using the ProBio platform we are able to rapidly evaluate both new and old drugs in subsets of patients with a similar genomic biomarker. The aim is to give patients with metastatic prostate cancer an individualized treatment based on treatment-predictive genomic biomarker signatures in the near future.

STHLM3

STHLM3 was a large-scale prospective and population-based prostate cancer diagnostic trial involving close to 60, 000 men in Stockholm 2013-2015 with the aim of to develop and validate a model to identify high-risk prostate cancer with better test characteristics. Two screening methods, PSA and the Stockholm3 test, were assessed and compared for safety and efficacy. 

The primary aim of the STHLM3 trial was to investigate if the Stockholm3 test could substantially reduce the proportion of men undergoing prostate biopsy whilst maintaining the sensitivity for detecting consequential prostate cancer (Gleason Score 7 or above) compared to PSA. 

The results showed that the Stockholm3 test could reduce the number of unnecessary prostate biopsies by close to 50% and decrease indolent cancers (Gleason 6, typically regarded as overdiagnosed cancers) by 20%, without reducing the sensitivity to detect consequential prostate cancer compared to using the PSA. 

The data from the trial provides a fantastic resource for studying prostate cancer diagnostics, and has since the publication of the main results in the Lancet Oncology 2015 been used in a large number of follow-up publications.

The Stockholm3 test

The Stockholm3 test is a blood test developed in the research group that combines protein markers, genetic markers and clinical data with an advanced algorithm in order to detect aggressive prostate cancer at an early stage.

Publications

All publications from group members

Staff and contact

Group leader

All members of the group

Other people connected to the group

  • Ernemo, Klara

Visiting address

Karolinska Institutet, Department of Medical Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Nobels väg 12A, Stockholm, 17177, Sweden

Postal address

Karolinska Institutet, Department of Medical Epidemiology and Biostatistics, PO Box 281, Stockholm, 17177, Sweden

STHLM0

Logotype for the STHLM0 registry

STHLM0, the Stockholm Prostate Cancer Diagnostics Register, is a quality register managed by the Department of Medical Epidemiology and Biostatistics at Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden. It is a unique quality register that includes all men tested for prostate cancer in Stockholm, Sweden.

STHLM0 Steering Committee

STHLM0 is managed by a steering committee, responsible for policy documents, major decisions, ethics committee applications, news circulation, applying for funding, and approving data access to entities working outside of Karolinska Institutet. 

Meet our core team working to maintain and update STHLM0.  

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Henrik Grönberg

Professor/Senior Physician
+46852482347
Department of Medical Epidemiology and Biostatistics
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Tobias Nordström

Affiliated to Research
Department of Clinical Sciences, Danderyd Hospital;Department of Medical Epidemiology and Biostatistics
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Markus Aly

Affiliated to Research
Department of Molecular Medicine and Surgery
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Martin Eklund

Professor
+46852482501
Department of Medical Epidemiology and Biostatistics
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Anna Lantz

Affiliated to Research
Department of Molecular Medicine and Surgery;Department of Medical Epidemiology and Biostatistics
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Mark Clements

Senior Lecturer
+46852482023
Department of Medical Epidemiology and Biostatistics
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Alessio Crippa

Senior Research Specialist
+46852482264
Department of Medical Epidemiology and Biostatistics
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Andrea Discacciati

Department of Medical Epidemiology and Biostatistics

Vivekananda Lanka

System Developer
+46852482499
Department of Medical Epidemiology and Biostatistics
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Anna Berglund

Administrator
+46852482216
Department of Medical Epidemiology and Biostatistics

Visit us

The Department of Medical Epidemiology and Biostatistics

Visiting address: Nobels väg 12A, SE-171 65 Solna

Information on STHLM0

STHLM0 was developed with the aim of collecting demographic, clinical, and patient-outcomes information on all men tested for prostate cancer in Stockholm, Sweden. STHLM0 includes all men who have undertaken prostate cancer diagnostic testing in Stockholm since 2003. Our records go back to 2003, and are updated annually. STHLM0 got ethics committee approval, and has been continuously expanding to include additional variables that can be perform and advance research. 

Registers linked to STHLM0

STHLM0 collects original data on every PSA testing performed in Stockholm, MRI, prostatic biopsies, and other prostate cancer diagnostics. However, supplementary information from other registers is linked to STHLM0. Examples of linked registers: 

  • Swedish Patient Register  
  • Cause of Death Register 
  • Swedish Cancer Register 
  • Swedish Prescribed Drug Register
  • Swedish Population Register 
  • Swedish Education Register 
  • Swedish National Prostate Cancer Register  

Updating

STHLM0 gets updated annually. 

  • Data from the different laboratories are sent  every quarter
  • Data from the registers are updated once per year 

There is a one-year delay in collecting the cause of death data, but not the date of death. 

Publications based on STHLM0

STHLM0 gives our research a unique opportunity in having a comprehensive population-based register of all men tested for prostate cancer in Stockholm region. Overall, more than 30 articles were published, and ongoing projects are planned using the register. 

Request access and/or collaboration ideas

We welcome researchers from across Sweden and the globe to access our register. With more than 500,000 men followed up since 2003, we provide access to a unique dataset that can advance our understanding of prostate cancer epidemiology. 

If you are a research group and would like to suggest collaboration ideas, we welcome you to fill out the contact form link. 

All applications will be reviewed by the steering committee. Valid applications must fill out the specified form, and submit a short project plan (max of 400 words).

If you are requesting access to data, you should have got approval of the collaboration by the Steering Committee, and received Swedish ethics committee approval. Approvals from IRB/ethics committees from other countries will not be accepted. All the research conducted is done after approval from the Swedish ethics committee.

To request access to the data, please fill out the following form link.