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The following article was published in Your Health Magazine. Our mission is to empower people to live healthier.
Jennifer Young, MD
Prostate Cancer Screening
The Urology Group - Lansdowne
. http://www.urologygroupvirginia.com/

Prostate Cancer Screening

Other than skin cancer, prostate cancer is the most common cancer in American men. The American Cancer Society’s estimates for prostate cancer in the United States for 2015 are

About 220,800 new cases of prostate cancer

About 27,540 deaths from prostate cancer

About one man in seven will be diagnosed with prostate cancer during his lifetime.

Prostate cancer occurs mainly in older men. About six cases in 10 are diagnosed in men aged 65 or older, and it is rare before age 40. The average age at the time of diagnosis is about 66.

Prostate cancer is the second leading cause of cancer death in American men, behind only lung cancer. About one man in 38 will die of prostate cancer.

Prostate cancer can be a serious disease, but most men diagnosed with prostate cancer do not die from it. In fact, more than 2.9 million men in the United States who have been diagnosed with prostate cancer at some point are still alive today.

Screening For Prostate Cancer

Prostate specific antigen (PSA) blood test. PSA is a substance that may be found in high amounts in men with prostate cancer, prostate enlargement or a urinary tract infection.

Digital rectal exam Evaluates the prostate for lumps or anything else unusual.

PSA screening is controversial because of the concern of false-positives and over-diagnosing small non-aggressive cancers. This can lead to unneeded biopsies, surgeries or radiation treatments with associated risks.

Newer tests are available for prostate cancer screening such as the Prostate Health Index (PHI), which combines total PSA, free PSA and pro2PSA a genetic marker for prostate cancer. Advances in prostate cancer imaging includes pelvic and endorectal MRI. These tools help urologists screen smarter.

American Urological Association (AUA) 2013 PSA Guidelines

The AUA recommends against PSA screening in men under

age 40.

The AUA does not recommend routine screening in men between ages 40 to 54 years at average risk. For men younger than 55 at higher risk (positive family history or African American), talk to your health care provider and decide if prostate cancer screening is right for you.

The greatest benefit of screening appears to be in men 55 to 69. The decision to undergo PSA screening involves weighing the benefits of preventing prostate cancer death in one man for every 1000 men.

PSA screening every two years or based on baseline PSA may be better than every year.

The AUA does not recommend routine PSA screening in men age 70+ years or any man with less than a 10 to 15 year life expectancy. However, some men age 70+ years who are in excellent health may benefit from prostate cancer screening.

Talk to your health care provider about if PSA screening is right for you.

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