Screening the right men for Prostate Cancer
Due to risks associated with over diagnosisThe process of determining which condition a patient may have. and subsequent unnecessary treatment, there is a need for far better selection of men who should be screened for PSAAn abbreviation for prostate-specific antigen, an enzyme that is produced by the prostate. High levels are present in the blood when the prostate gland is enlarged or inflamed.. The trouble is that the name prostateA gland that surrounds the urethra near the bladder. It produces a fluid that forms part of the semen. specific antigenA substance that prompts the immune system to fight infection with antibodies. (PSA) is a bit of a misnomer in the context of detecting cancerAbnormal, uncontrolled cell division resulting in a malignant tumour that may invade surrounding tissues or spread to distant parts of the body.. PSA levels can become raised following a bicycle ride and so the test is not good on its own as a marker for prostate cancer. The test is just part of an overall diagnostic approach.
King’s Hospital Urology Consultant, Richard Popert referring to the government initiative ‘Prostate Cancer Risk Management Programme’ says: “Overall this is a good thing and full specialist consultation was carried out for this initiative which has been ongoing since 2002. I don’t think any Urologist feels that unrestricted national screeningA way to identify people who may have a certain condition, among a group of people who may or may not seem to needs to be carried out and the studies certainly suggest no specific benefit. The issue here is whether you can select a population which should be screened because they are at greater risk, family history, and whether offering younger men at 40 a baseline test would be of benefit to weed out those most at risk.”
In his article published on totalhealth, Mr Popert explains how to improve the whole diagnostic approach for detecting prostate cancer in men.
