Psa Test An Effective Method For Screening Prostate Cancer

By Author: Pete Jameson
Total Articles: 16
Comment this article

It is said that more than half of the men in the group of above 60 years of age and around 70 percentages of men in their 80’s lie in the high risk age group that could probably have prostate cancer due to the fluctuations in the levels of testosterone. The early detection and proper treatments have greatly helped many cancer patients to lead a healthy and happy life. When it comes to diagnosis and detection the PSA test or the Prostate specific Antigen test have so far being found to be one of the most effective tests for early and accurate detection of prostate cancer.

The PSA test basically measures the levels of Prostate specific Antigen present in the blood of an individual. The chance of a patient to likely have prostate cancer is often directly proportional to the elevated levels of the PSA in the blood. The higher the level of PSA in the blood higher is the possibility of having prostate cancer. But in some cases an elevated PSA may not be an indicator of cancer. PSA test is widely being used as an effective method for detection and even monitoring patients. By keeping a check on the levels of PSA in the blood, ...
... the effectiveness of the treatment and the speed of recovery of prostate cancer patients can be easily determined.

PSA is basically a type of a protein produced by the prostate gland the occurrence of PSA in blood does not confirm prostate cancer but the abnormally elevated PSA levels do indicate the presence of cancerous cells. If the levels of the protein in the blood sample is above 4.0 Nano grams per millimetre (ng/mL) then the doctor usually recommend the patient to undergo a prostate biopsy to determine whether prostate cancer is the cause for the elevated PSA levels.

It’s not always necessary that elevated PSA levels would lead to prostate cancer in some rare cases the increased levels of the protein may be due to a probable urinary tract infections or frequent usage of some drugs like dutasteride usually recommended for blood pressure control. Sometimes even genetic factors are found to be a reason for high levels of the protein, if the father or brother of the patient have reported the same medical condition in the past then it’s likely that he may also have elevated PSA level and may not be a prostate cancer victim.

Elevated PSA levels may also sometimes indicate the presence of Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia (BPH) a common, benign (not cancerous) condition in older men in which the prostate gland enlarges. The abnormal growth of the prostate gland can affect the urethra and cause difficulty in urination. These tests have been a great blessing to people helping them in early detection and proper monitoring of the stages of their illness and treatments. In Kansas City many speciality hospitals offer efficient PSA test at competitive rates.

To more about PSA tests and other latest and advanced treatments visit http://www.KCUrology.com