Prostate cancer screenings have huge rate of false positives

(NaturalNews) One in eight men screened for prostate cancer will be falsely diagnosed with the disease, according to a study reported in the British Journal of Cancer.

Routing screening for levels of the prostate specific antigen (PSA), a marker of prostate inflammation and a presumed prostate cancer risk factor, is not yet recommended in the European Union. The European Randomized Study of Screening for Prostate Cancer, currently underway in seven countries, is intended to gather research into whether the practice should be adopted.

Recent data from the study suggested that regular screening could reduce the disease's death rate by 20 percent. The most recent data from the Finnish part of the study is now raising questions as to the wider cost of that improved survival rate.

"While the European trial, of which this Finnish study is a part, showed for the first time that prostate screening with PSA can save lives, it also suggested that 48 men would have to be treated in order to save one life," said Julietta Patnick of the United Kingdom's National Health Service.

Prostate cancer screening has become increasingly controversial due to emerging evidence that the majority of prostate cancers are so slow growing that many men will die of other causes without ever suffering any symptoms. This has raised questions as to how many men are being over-treated with therapies that can carry serious side effects, including impotence and incontinence.

The new study suggests another problem: even with a relatively high PSA threshold, one in eight men screened in the study received a false positive result. Further complicating matters, the researchers found that men who had been falsely diagnosed became significantly less likely to undergo future screening, even though they are at higher risk of developing the disease.

"I don't think routine screening should be advised until more is known on the adverse effects and costs of screening," lead researcher Tuomas Kilpelainen said. "If a man has urinary tract symptoms and is concerned he could have prostate cancer, the most important thing is to consult a GP or a urologist."

Sources for this story include: news.bbc.co.uk.

Prostate Cancer Screening: 50 Percent False Positives

(NaturalNews) As many as 50 percent of all prostate cancer diagnoses may be cases of over-diagnosis, according to a study published in the British Medical Journal.

Over-diagnosis refers to the detection of a cancer that, if left untreated, would never have any negative effects on a person's life. This happens with cancers that grow slowly and do not spread to other organs, so that a patient dies of other causes before ever experiencing any symptoms.

Because prostate cancers tend to be very slow growing, the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force has recommended against screening men over the age of 74 for prostate cancer. Treatments for the disease can have severe side effects, including impotence and incontinence, and may even increase the risk of early death.

Another paper, published in the same issue of the journal, found that the prostate specific antigen (PSA) test commonly used to assess prostate cancer risk cannot reliably predict this risk in most cases.

The PSA is a marker of prostate inflammation, which in turn is believed to be a risk factor for prostate cancer. Yet in a study on 1,540 Swedish men, researchers found that PSA levels were not correlated with prostate cancer risk. The only exception was levels below 1 nanogram per mililiter, which suggest a prostate cancer risk of almost zero.

The British National Health Service recommends referral for cancer screening such as biopsies for men between the ages of 50 and 59 who have a PSA level of 3 nanograms per mililiter or higher, and for older men who have levels of 5 nanograms per mililiter or higher.

Another recent study found that regular PSA screenings did not decrease men's risk of dying from prostate cancer.

The British Parliament has been considering promoting more regular PSA screening, but so far has declined to do so. According to general practitioner James Kingsland, a member of the government advisory group on prostate cancer risk management, the new studies lend support to this decision.

"It is using a test for something which it was never designed for, which is always dangerous," he said.

Sources for this story include: news.bbc.co.uk.