date: 5/16/2007
Checking PSA ‘speed’ sharpens prostate cancer test
A recent study found that how fast the prostate-specific antigen level rises is a good predictor of aggressive prostate cancer. ConsumerReportsHealth.org gives you the facts about the study, which did not look at whether this test saved lives.
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Determining how fast the prostate-specific antigen (PSA) level rises could provide a more accurate warning about aggressive prostate cancer, a new study suggests.
Researchers at Johns Hopkins University tracked the PSA changes in more than 100 prostate-cancer patients, using blood samples going back 39 years. The men with rapidly rising PSA levels up to two years before diagnosis were about 20 times more likely to die of the disease than those with slower increases. Moreover, PSA levels were rising faster 10 to 15 years before diagnosis in those who died of the cancer than in the survivors.
There's still no firm evidence that the PSA test saves lives, so the decision to take it depends largely on personal preference. But men who choose to do so should consider changes in their PSA score from year to year, our consultants say.
The American Cancer Society recommends having a biopsy if the PSA score increases by more than 0.75 mg per year and the rise is confirmed, even if the readings are still within the normal range. In addition, increases greater than 0.35 mg per year--the amount linked with cancer development years later in this study--may warrant PSA testing more often than annually.
Researchers at Johns Hopkins University tracked the PSA changes in more than 100 prostate-cancer patients, using blood samples going back 39 years. The men with rapidly rising PSA levels up to two years before diagnosis were about 20 times more likely to die of the disease than those with slower increases. Moreover, PSA levels were rising faster 10 to 15 years before diagnosis in those who died of the cancer than in the survivors.
There's still no firm evidence that the PSA test saves lives, so the decision to take it depends largely on personal preference. But men who choose to do so should consider changes in their PSA score from year to year, our consultants say.
The American Cancer Society recommends having a biopsy if the PSA score increases by more than 0.75 mg per year and the rise is confirmed, even if the readings are still within the normal range. In addition, increases greater than 0.35 mg per year--the amount linked with cancer development years later in this study--may warrant PSA testing more often than annually.
This article first appeared in the June 2007 issue of Consumer Reports on Health.
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