It's the only way to be sure -- read the disclaimers in the small print, optional.
Tests! And of course, get insurance and government to pay for them. And pay, And pay/ And pay.
After this, and the other related article posted today, I am seething. 😡 I insist that this era in medicine will go down as the most barbaric in history.
Every year, in addition to the PSA test, I get the vinyl glove exam. Very unpleasant experience but gives additional assurance all is okay with the prostate.
My friend is 90 and he was just diagnosed with prostate cancer. The Dr. wanted to start treatment immediately. He laughed and politely declined.
“For every 1,000 men screened, only 1 man may avoid death from prostate cancer, “
For every 10,000,000 screened, 10,000 lives are saved?
I’ve been saying this for years.
I’m astonished that I’m reading it somewhere finally.
I would argue that the same applies to colonoscopy.
But the article ignores the basic personal responsibility of the patient to avoid ‘cartel medicine’ entirely. My father became suddenly became bedridden this past week - NOT due to injury, disease or procedure - and it is entirely the result of his own actions & inaction alike (though the cartel left a paper trail of enabling).
The ‘cartel’ is enriched...
If my GP had paid attention to my PSA tests in the past, and if I had known to pay attention to it, I would not now have Stage 4 Prostate cancer and be condemned to a miserable, painful death.
People who write articles like this do so to reduce healthcare costs, not help men.
And a biopsy, while humiliating is not that big of deal.
If you have a sudden rise in your PSA, get a biopsy. And get you PSA tested annually after age 50.
These authors are full of shit.
I do understand the perspective, but from the other side, it killed my brother-in-law at 68. It was awful.
Heh. I’m 71 and I ain’t been screened for nothin’. At least, not in the last 40 years.
That said, I did have an aortic valve replacement surgery about 3 years ago and they barely caught it in time. And I just had hernia surgery three days ago. Both showed symptoms, obviously.
At our age, my wife and I agree that if we should get some kind of cancer, we’ll forego AMA sanctioned treatment, other than holistic stuff. Nobody lives forever.
“To live is Christ and to die is gain.” — The apostle Paul
My PSA is always high. Got a biopsy and the urologist said there was no cancer, just a really enlarged prostate due to BPH. I’ll continue to get a PSA test and exam every year, since my father died at 77 of prostate cancer and both of my brothers have been treated for it.
Probably true. I get it 3 times per year so increasing levels can be tracked and addressed if need be.
Dad died a horrible death from prostate cancer. PSA is a pointer, nothing more and it is simple and inexpensive. The agent in Dad’s death was prostate cancer but the cause was neglect and a smart man ignoring the symptoms and signs for a very long time.
I get tested each year, I will not easily submit to a biopsy without there being other indications. I will not panic but I will not ignore the pointers. MRI is becoming the gold standard for diagnostics in prostate problems. It is simple but the medical community has resisted it, there is no money in it for them or at least not much and not near as much as a string of biopsies and prostate removals.
Most nights I sleep from the time I go to bed until I get up in the morning. I take that as a good sign.
I take heed to these articles but will not let them change my decisions. To each his own of course.
PSA slightly above cutoff, but fairly consistent. What they don’t tell you is that the last time the prostate was “used” can change the results. Yes, I look for the trend over time rather than panic.
BPH, but scan shows it is uniform, just enlarged. Flowmax keeps the yellow gold flowing and I can tell if I missed a dose. However, the white gold tends to go into the bladder rather than make its escape. I’m told this is a path-of-least-resistance result.
I said no to the UroLift option. I think that is what the adult diaper sentence in the article was about.
bump
Oh yeah? You wanna take that chance? My younger brother's doctor had that attitude, and when my brother finally went for a second opinion on his PSA level 12, they did a biopsy and surgery. His cancerous prostate was bigger than a small orange, and he's lucky it didn't spread to his other organs.
Who’s got a great prostate? Is it a hoax?
yet another reason I can trust a single medical “professional”.
It’s kind of important when the prostate is gone. My dad just went through this cancer, and the point of the test is that if you start seeing a rise, especially a rapid one, above your natural baseline, it’s best to talk to the doc.
OpenEvidence.com says:
“The American Urological Association (AUA) states that there is no single universal baseline PSA value that applies to all men; instead, baseline PSA levels vary by age and individual risk factors. The AUA recommends considering age-specific median PSA values for risk stratification: for men aged 40 to 49 years, the median PSA is approximately 0.68 ng/mL, for ages 50 to 54 years it is 0.88 ng/mL, and for ages 55 to 59 years it is 0.96 ng/mL. These medians are used to identify men at very low risk for long-term prostate cancer mortality if their PSA is below the age-specific median.[1]
The AUA further notes that the commonly cited threshold for an “elevated” PSA is 4 ng/mL, but this threshold is not used as a universal baseline; rather, it is a decision point for further evaluation. Age-specific thresholds for what is considered elevated PSA are also recommended: 2.5 ng/mL for men in their 40s, 3.5 ng/mL in their 50s, 4.5 ng/mL in their 60s, and 6.5 ng/mL in their 70s.[1] The rationale is that PSA levels naturally increase with age, and using age-adjusted thresholds helps reduce unnecessary biopsies and overdiagnosis.
The AUA emphasizes that the decision to proceed with further evaluation or biopsy should not rely solely on a single PSA value, but should incorporate age, PSA kinetics, family history, and other clinical factors.[2]”
This article was heavily simplified and leaves out many factors when it comes to deciding how to proceed after a PSA test while you still have your prostate. I know three men who have gone through this, and none have come out (permanently) incontinent.
Let’s not mention that prostate cancer is extremely common in the US.
“According to an invited review in The New England Journal of Medicine, prostate cancer is the most commonly diagnosed cancer (excluding nonmelanoma skin cancer) and the second leading cause of cancer death among U.S. men.”
“The lifetime risk for an American male of being diagnosed with prostate cancer is about 1 in 8 (12.9%), while the lifetime risk of dying from it is about 1 in 41 (2.4%).[2-4]
Incidence rates have fluctuated in response to changes in PSA screening recommendations. After a period of decline from 2007 to 2014, prostate cancer incidence has increased by about 3% annually, driven primarily by a rise in regional and metastatic disease, likely related to reduced PSA screening.[3][5-7]”
TL;DR: The test is a simple blood draw that has a practical use and DOES help diagnose cancer when properly utilized - it takes more than one test before taking further action. Whether you decide to take the risk or not is up to you. Your doc can’t force you.
Bkmk.
Ping