What will be the global incidence of prostate cancer by 2030?

According to a new set of projections just published in The Lancet this morning, the total global burden of new cases of cancer will increase by about 75 percent (from 12.7 million in 2008 to 22.2 million in 2030) over the next 30-odd years.

Do African Americans do worse than Caucasians on active surveillance?

Data to be presented at the annual meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) on Sunday, June 3, suggest that African American men with localized prostate cancer may be less likely that Caucasian men to respond well to active surveillance as a management strategy. However, this conclusion comes from a retrospective analysis of [...]

AUA drops use of the term “screening” in association with appropriate use of PSA testing

Yesterday evening, the American Urological Association (AUA) issued a new, formal statement on the role of PSA testing in assessment of risk for prostate cancer: “Information Sheet: Prostate-specific antigen (PSA) testing for the early detection of prostate cancer.”

PSA levels in previously tested and untested American males: what do they tell us?

In a poster to be presented at the upcoming annual meeting of the American Society for Clinical Oncology (ASCO) on Sunday, June 3, Allen et al. have compared the PSA levels of previously tested American men to the PSA levels of American men whose PSA level had never previously been assayed.

Reduction of risk for lethal prostate cancer in Sweden

A paper to be presented at the upcoming annual meeting of the American Society for Clinical Oncology (ASCO) suggests that, at least in Sweden, the combination of an increase in PSA testing, early diagnosis, and treatment with curative intent has decreased the risk for and incidence of lethal prostate cancer.

Active surveillance in the “real world” of clinical practice today

A poster to be presented at the upcoming ASCO annual meeting gives us some insights into the actual behaviors of physicians and their patients regarding the use of active surveillance today in the “real world” of clinical practice (as opposed to clinical trials and case series at academic medical centers).

How one good story may trump a plethora of good data

Some readers may be interested in reviewing an article that appears in Time magazine this week entitled “Why people stick with cancer screening, even when it causes harm.” The article reviews how our experiences and perceptions may color the way we make our individual decisions about things like screening for breast and prostate cancers.

Ensuring better up-front patient education under a “new world order”

Subsequent to issuance of the USPSTF’s final “D” recommendation on the use of the PSA test as a tool to screen healthy males  for prostate cancer, the Department of Health and Human Services has already clearly stated that Medicare will continue to cover costs associated with the use of the PSA test as a method [...]

Discussion of USPSTF recommendation continues apace

Many readers of this blog will enjoy reviewing the editorial commentary in today’s issue of the influential USA Today, entitled “Skipping prostate test can kill“.

Baseline PSA levels and 10-year risk for a diagnosis of prostate cancer

Earlier, retrospective studies based on Swedish and Danish databases have suggested that men in their 40s with a single PSA level of < 1.0 ng/ml are at low risk for a diagnosis of prostate cancer for up to 30 years after that initial, baseline PSA result.

Prostate cancer “spread through the air” … NOT!

How did we all miss this? This may be the single most important paper presented at the annual meeting of the American Urological Association this year!

At least one intelligent response to the USPSTF recommendation

Dan Zenka, a prostate cancer patient and a Senior VP with the Prostate Cancer Foundation, appears to have published one of the more intelligent responses to the USPSTF recommendation on PSA screening since Monday’s announcement. Have a look at his blog post.

USPSTF makes unsophisticated “final” decision about role of PSA testing

According to an article in  today’s Annals of Internal Medicine, the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force or USPSTF has confirmed its prior draft recommendation against all “routine” use of PSA testing for risk of prostate cancer, stating that ”This recommendation applies to men in the general U.S. population, regardless of age.”

Do SPOP mutations define a new molecular subtype of prostate cancer?

A Letter to the Editor just published in the journal Nature Genetics has suggested that that so-called SPOP mutations may be responsible for between 6 and 15 percent of the prostate cancers diagnosed in the USA each year.

Hospital volume important to outcomes among older, sicker, Medicare patients treated by RP

A media release issued by Henry Ford Health System earlier today has a distinctly misleading headline that reads as follows: “Higher hospital volume more important than surgeon experience in outcome of prostate cancer surgery.” You need to read the content of the media release with care to understand that this headline is by no means [...]

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