The last time the US Preventive Services Task Force weighed in on prostate cancer screening via blood tests, in 2012, it issued unambiguous advice to physicians: discourage men of all ages from getting tested for levels of prostate-specific antigen (PSA). That’s still the advice for men older than 70 or younger than 55.
But for those aged 55 to 69, the task force…recommends “informed, individualized decision making based on a man’s values and preferences.”
Translation: learn as much as you can, talk to your physician, then decide for yourself.
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If 1,000 men get PSA screening (cost: roughly $40), 240 will be told their PSA level suggests cancer might be present. Next step: a biopsy, in which a needle, usually inserted through the rectum, samples several spots in the prostate gland.
Of those 240 biopsies, 140 men will be told, oops, the PSA was misleading: You have no signs of cancer…Of the other 100 men, in whom biopsy shows definite cancer, up to 50 have malignant cells that will turn out to be so slow-growing — “indolent” — that the cancer would never spread or harm them.
Unfortunately, it’s impossible to tell from looking at cancer cells if they’re wimps or killers, so 80 of the 100 men with prostate cancer choose surgery or radiation treatment….At least 60 men suffer urinary incontinence and sexual impotence from the treatment.
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Bottom line: 1,000 men screened, one prostate-cancer death averted in that time.
The GLP aggregated and excerpted this blog/article to reflect the diversity of news, opinion, and analysis. Read full, original post: Should you get screened for prostate cancer? We break down the latest advice
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