# GÖTEBORG-2 (MRI-based prostate cancer screening)

Source: https://onco.cc/trials/goteborg-2/  
OnCo record `goteborg-2` (Trial). Data CC BY-NC 4.0, attribute "Data from OnCo (onco.cc)"; commercial use needs a licence.

## TL;DR

In GÖTEBORG-2, 17,980 men were screened with PSA, then MRI; biopsying only what the MRI showed halved the detection of harmless prostate cancers (0.6% versus 1.2% of men) while the detection of dangerous cancers barely changed (0.9% versus 1.1%). It is the strongest evidence that MRI-first screening cuts overdiagnosis.

## Summary

17,980 men were invited; those with PSA of 3 ng/mL or more had MRI. In the experimental group (targeted biopsy of MRI-visible lesions only) clinically insignificant cancer was detected in 0.6% of men versus 1.2% in the reference group (systematic plus targeted biopsy), a relative risk of 0.46, while clinically significant cancer was found in 0.9% versus 1.1% (NEJM 2022). Follow-up rounds have shown that the deferred diagnoses rarely progress to advanced disease. The trial is the strongest evidence that MRI-first screening can retain the mortality benefit of PSA while cutting overdiagnosis.

## Fields

- Kind: Trial
- Status: positive
- Last checked: 2026-09-10
- Registry id: ISRCTN94604465
- Phase: 3
- Setting: Population-based screening of men aged 50 to 60 in Gothenburg: PSA then MRI, with MRI-targeted biopsy only versus systematic plus targeted biopsy
- Sponsor: University of Gothenburg
- Enrolled: 17980
- Result: Clinically insignificant cancer 0.6% vs 1.2% (RR 0.46); clinically significant cancer 0.9% vs 1.1%.
- Outcomes: Detection of clinically insignificant prostate cancer: MRI-targeted biopsy only 0.6% vs Systematic plus targeted biopsy 1.2%, HR 0.46

## Sources

- GÖTEBORG-2 (NEJM 2022): https://doi.org/10.1056/NEJMoa2209454

## Connected records

- cancers: [Prostate cancer](https://onco.cc/cancers/prostate/)
- technologies: [Multiparametric prostate MRI (PI-RADS)](https://onco.cc/technologies/mp-mri/), [PSA and MRI-first prostate cancer screening](https://onco.cc/technologies/prostate-screening-psa-mri/)
- terms: [Overdiagnosis](https://onco.cc/terms/overdiagnosis/), [PSA (prostate-specific antigen)](https://onco.cc/terms/psa/)
- key papers: [Prostate Cancer Screening with PSA and MRI Followed by Targeted Biopsy Only](https://onco.cc/key-papers/paper-goteborg-2-n-engl-j-med-2022/)
- trials: [ERSPC (European Randomized Study of Screening for Prostate Cancer)](https://onco.cc/trials/erspc/)

---
JSON: https://onco.cc/api/v1/entities/goteborg-2.json