• Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia
  • Hormone Therapy
  • Genomic Testing
  • Next-Generation Imaging
  • UTUC
  • OAB and Incontinence
  • Genitourinary Cancers
  • Kidney Cancer
  • Men's Health
  • Pediatrics
  • Female Urology
  • Sexual Dysfunction
  • Kidney Stones
  • Urologic Surgery
  • Bladder Cancer
  • Benign Conditions
  • Prostate Cancer

Study: PSA screening declining in post-USPSTF era

Article

New research shows a significant decrease in PSA screening by primary care physicians since the release of the United States Preventive Services Task Force recommendation against screening in May 2012.

New research shows a significant decrease in PSA screening by primary care physicians since the release of the United States Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) recommendation against screening in May 2012.

The decline in prostate cancer screening is particularly pronounced in the oldest and youngest men, study authors from the University of Chicago reported online in Urologic Oncology: Seminars and Original Investigations (Aug. 1, 2013).

Researchers led by Brian T. Helfand, MD, PhD, identified more than 112,000 men who met their inclusion criteria for the study: those between 40 and 79 years of age with no history of prostate cancer or urology visit and who were evaluated by an internal medicine or family practice physician between 2007 and 2012. Analyses were aimed at PSA testing within the 6-month time period from June to November, with particular focus on the 2011 (pre-USPSTF recommendation) and 2012 (post-USPSTF recommendation) cohorts.

The primary outcome was proportion of men with one or more PSA tests during the 6-month pre- and post-USPSTF recommendation periods.

A significant decrease in screening frequency was seen between the 2011 and 2012 cohorts (8.6% vs. 7.6%, p=.0001; adjusted odds ratio: 0.89, 95% confidence interval: 0.83-0.95).

“This decrease was most evident amongst patients aged 40 to 49 years (5.6% vs. 4.6%, p=.004) and 70 to 79 years (7.9% vs. 6.2%, p=.01),” the authors wrote. A significant decrease was also observed in men with PSA values <2.5 ng/mL (p=.0074).

Primary care physicians, according to the researchers, “may be shifting toward more selective screening practices, as decreases in screening are most pronounced in the youngest and oldest patients and in those with history of PSA values <2.5 ng/mL.”

To get weekly news from the leading news source for urologists, subscribe to the Urology Times eNews.
 

Related Videos
Samuel L. Washington III, MD, MAS, answers a question during a Zoom video interview
Conceptual image for prostate cancer treatment | © Dr_Microbe - stock.adobe.com
Female doctor talking with male patient | Image Credit: © Prostock-studio - stock.adobe.com
Daniel A. Triner, MD, PhD, answers a question during a Zoom video interview
Video 2 - "Predicting Risk and Guiding Care: Biomarkers & Genetic Testing in Prostate Cancer"
Video 1 - "Metastatic Prostate Cancer: Background and Patient Prognosis"
Prostate cancer, 3D illustration showing presence of tumor inside prostate gland which compresses urethra | Image Credit: © Dr_Microbe - stock.adobe.com
Doctor consulting with patient | Image Credit: © Khunatorn - stock.adobe.com
Scott Morgan, MD, MSc, FRCPC, answers a question during a Zoom video interview
Man talking with a doctor | Image Credit: © Chinnapong - stock.adobe.com
Related Content
© 2024 MJH Life Sciences

All rights reserved.