HURP gene as a molecular marker for bladder cancer

A method for monitoring bladder cancer in a human subject, comprising the steps of:

• (1′) periodically obtaining a biological sample from a subject suspected to have bladder cancer;
• and
• (2′) detecting the expression of a human HURP gene in said sample, the detected expression of the human HURP gene being indicative of the presence of the bladder cancer.

A DNA sequence having a nucleotide sequence selected from the sequences as set forth in SEQ ID NOs:2 to 5.

A primer set for the detection of bladder cancer in a human subject, comprising a forward primer having a nucleotide sequence selected from the sequences as set forth in SEQ ID NO:2 and SEQ ID NO:4, and a reverse primer having a nucleotide sequence selected from the sequences as set forth in SEQ ID NO:3 and SEQ ID NO:5.

A diagnosis kit for the detection of bladder cancer in a human subject, containing at least a primer pair of a forward primer and a reverse primer, each primer having a nucleotide sequence that hybridizes to at least 13 nucleotides of a human HURP gene having a nucleotide sequence corresponding to SEQ ID NO:1.

The diagnosis kit according to claim 34, containing a first primer pair comprising a first forward primer having a nucleotide sequence corresponding to SEQ ID NO:2 and a first reverse primer having a nucleotide sequence corresponding to SEQ ID NO:3, and a second primer pair comprising a second forward primer having a nucleotide sequence corresponding to SEQ ID NO:4 and a second reverse primer having a nucleotide sequence corresponding to SEQ ID NO:5.