At Cardiff University, a very specific type of sound bath has been created by Professor Aled Clayton, Dr Isobella Honeyborne, Xiaoyan Zhang and Dr Chris Yang. It isn’t quite like those that you might come across during a wellness retreat, but it could be one that is even better for your health. 

“The device sends pulses of sound through the crowds of microscopic particles in fluids like blood and urine to help extract bubbles of information called vesicles.” 

It has the potential to: 

• turn blood and urine samples into tools to more efficiently diagnose prostate cancer. 
• reduce the quantity of men needing invasive surgical tests. 

Our cells use vesicles to transport important substances and signals around our body. The vesicles that travel into our blood and urine come from all areas of the body, as a result they help us to understand what is going on in various organs. If a person has prostate cancer, vesicles from their prostate will likely contain certain information that enables doctors to diagnose the disease and discuss treatment options. 

However, it isn’t that simple. In each blood or urine sample, there are a lot of different types of vesicles, and the other particles present can drown out their signals. This means that it can be difficult to pick up the signals, and therefore accurately be able to diagnose someone. That is where this device comes in - it can help to tune out all of the other noise. 

The impact this device is hoped to have: 

• That it will help to figure out who does and doesn’t need to have a prostate biopsy taken
• Those who don’t have prostate cancer or those who have cancer that won’t cause them harm are not encouraged to have one

Why?

Prostate biopsies are necessary to confirm prostate cancer and decide on treatment options. But, the surgery is invasive, can be uncomfortable, and carries a small risk of infection.

“We need better diagnostic testing for prostate cancer, and the analysis of vesicles in blood or urine holds a lot of potential.”

“They carry a host of molecules that have come from the cancer cells, and our machine can help us analyse them rapidly.”

- Professor Aled Clayton

The UK National Screening Committee (UK NSC) published a draft in November 2025 which recommended the introduction of a targeted prostate cancer screening programme. Should this programme be implemented in line with that draft, every two years, a PSA test will be offered to all 45 to 61 year old men with identified BRCA mutations. 

However with the concern around high PSA test results not confidently confirming prostate cancer, but rather indicating an increased risk of the disease, the development of this device could improve screening and diagnoses. 

Learn more about PSA testing: https://tgfct.org.uk/Testing-and-Treatments/PSA-Testing/PSA-Test

Find a testing event: mypsatests.org.uk/Events/

Order a home testing kit: mypsatests.org.uk/orders

Source: Good vibrations: how sound waves could help detect prostate cancer - Cancer Research UK - Cancer News