|
PSA & DRE Screening for
Prostate Cancer
Screening refers to testing to find a disease
such as cancer in people who do not have symptoms of that disease.
For some types of cancer, screening can help find cancers in an
early stage when they are more easily cured. Prostate cancer can
often be found early by testing the amount of prostate-specific
antigen (PSA) in the blood. Another way to find prostate cancer is
the digital rectal exam (DRE), in which your doctor inserts a
gloved finger into the rectum to feel the prostate gland. If the
results of either one of these tests are abnormal, further testing
is needed to see if there is a cancer. If you have routine yearly
exams and either one of these test results becomes abnormal, then
any cancer you might have has likely been found at an early, more
treatable stage.
Prostate-specific antigen (PSA) blood
test
Prostate-specific antigen (PSA) is a substance made by cells in
the prostate gland (it is made by normal cells and cancer cells).
Although PSA is mostly found in semen, a small amount is also
found in the blood. Most healthy men have levels under 4 nanograms
per milliliter (ng/mL) of blood. The chance of having prostate
cancer goes up as the PSA level goes up.
When prostate cancer develops, the PSA level usually goes above 4.
Still, a level below 4 does not mean that cancer isn't present --
about 15% of men with a PSA below 4 will have prostate cancer on
biopsy. Men with a PSA level in the borderline range between 4 and
10, have about a 1 in 4 chance of having prostate cancer. If the
PSA is more than 10, the chance of having prostate cancer is over
50%.
Percent-free PSA
PSA occurs in 2 major forms in the blood. One form is attached to
blood proteins while the other circulates free (unattached). The
percent-free PSA (fPSA) is the ratio of how much PSA circulates
free compared to the total PSA level. The percentage of free PSA
is lower in men who have prostate cancer than in men who do not.
This test is sometimes used to help decide if you should have a
prostate biopsy if your PSA results are in the borderline range
(between 4 and 10). A lower percent-free PSA means that your
likelihood of having prostate cancer is higher and you should
probably have a biopsy. Many doctors recommend biopsies for men
whose percent-free PSA is 10% or less, and advise that men
consider a biopsy if it is between 10% and 25%. Using these
cutoffs detects most cancers while helping some men to avoid
unnecessary prostate biopsies. This test is widely used, but not
all doctors agree that 25% is the best cutoff point to decide on a
biopsy.
PSA velocity
The PSA velocity is not a separate test. It is a measure of how
fast the PSA rises over time. Even when the total PSA value isn't
over 4, a high PSA velocity suggests that cancer may be present
and a biopsy should be considered. For example, if your PSA was
1.7 on one test, and then a year later it was 3.8, this rapid rise
may be cause for concern.
This can be useful if you are having the PSA test every year. For
men whose initial PSA value is less than 4, a PSA velocity of 0.35
(ng/mL) per year or greater (for example, if values went from 2 to
2.4 to 2.8 over the course of 2 years) may be cause for concern.
For men whose PSA value is between 4 and 10, a biopsy should be
more strongly considered if it goes up faster than 0.75 (ng/mL)
per year (for example, if values went from 4 to 4.8 to 5.6 over
the course of 2 years). Most doctors believe that PSA levels
should be measured on at least 3 occasions over a period of at
least 18 months in order to get an accurate PSA velocity.
PSA density
PSA levels are higher in men with larger prostate glands. The PSA
density (PSAD) is sometimes used for men with large prostate
glands to try to adjust for this. The doctor measures the volume
(size) of the prostate gland with transrectal ultrasound
(discussed below) and divides the PSA number by the prostate
volume. A higher PSA density (PSAD) indicates greater likelihood
of cancer. PSA density has not been shown to be that useful. The
percent-free PSA test has so far been shown to be more accurate.
Age-specific PSA ranges
PSA levels are normally higher in older men than in younger men,
even when there is no cancer. A PSA result within the borderline
range might be very worrisome in a 50-year-old man but cause less
concern in an 80-year-old man. For this reason, some doctors have
suggested comparing PSA results with results from other men of the
same age.
Digital rectal exam (DRE)
For a digital rectal exam (DRE), a doctor inserts a gloved,
lubricated finger into the rectum to feel for any bumps or hard
areas on the prostate that might be cancer. The prostate gland is
found just in front of the rectum, and most cancers begin in the
back part of the gland, which can be felt during a rectal exam.
This exam is uncomfortable, but it isn't painful and only takes a
short time.
DRE is less effective than the PSA blood test in finding prostate
cancer, but it can sometimes find cancers in men with normal PSA
levels. This is why the American Cancer Society guidelines
recommend that when prostate cancer screening is done, both the
DRE and PSA blood test should be used.
The DRE can also be used once a man is known to have prostate
cancer to try to determine if it may have spread to nearby tissues
and to detect cancer that has come back after treatment.
Transrectal ultrasound (TRUS)
Transrectal ultrasound (TRUS) uses sound waves to make an image of
the prostate on a video screen. For this test, a small probe that
gives off sound waves is placed in the rectum. The sound waves
enter the prostate and create echoes that are picked up by the
probe. A computer turns the pattern of echoes into a black and
white image of the prostate.
The procedure takes only a few minutes and is done in a doctor's
office or outpatient clinic. You will feel some pressure when the
TRUS probe is placed in your rectum, but it is usually not
painful.
TRUS is usually not recommended as a routine test by itself to
detect prostate cancer because it doesn't often show early cancer.
Instead, it is most commonly used during a prostate biopsy
(described in the next section). TRUS is used to guide the biopsy
needles into the right area of the prostate.
TRUS is useful in other situations as well. It can be used to
measure the size of the prostate gland, which can help determine
the PSA density and may also affect which treatment options a man
has. It is also used as a guide during some forms of treatment
such as cryosurgery.
Signs and symptoms of prostate cancer
Early prostate cancer usually causes no symptoms and is most often
found by a PSA test and/or DRE. Some advanced prostate cancers can
slow or weaken your urinary stream or make you need to urinate
more often. But non-cancerous diseases of the prostate, such as
BPH (benign prostatic hyperplasia) cause these symptoms more
often.
If the prostate cancer is advanced, you might have blood in your
urine (hematuria) or trouble getting an erection (impotence).
Advanced prostate cancer commonly spreads to the bones, which can
cause pain in the hips, spine, ribs, or other areas. Cancer that
has spread to the spine can also press on the spinal nerves, which
can result in weakness or numbness in the legs or feet, or even
loss of bladder or bowel control.
Other diseases can also cause many of these same symptoms. It is
important to tell your doctor if you have any of these problems so
that the cause can be found and treated.
|
|