Despite the advent of the genomic era, the perceived benefits of close collaboration between clinicians and scientists are not always realized and the gap between bench and bedside remains. Closer collaboration should expedite advances in treating disease. This text, with a foreword by Fritz H Schroder, is designed to enhance the relationship between the two communities. It contains data from a multinational authorship, the 40 chapters being written by experts with widely differing training and expectations. Their aim is to facilitate both understanding and in-depth knowledge of their subject. By bridging the gap between clinicians and scientists, the hope is to enhance translational research in their common goal of improving the diagnosis and treatment of prostate cancer, the single most important cancer affecting men.