Prostate-specific antigen

Prostate Surgery: For Older Men, Waiting May Be Better

Posted on 07/23/2012 by | Personal Health and Well-being | Comments

Bulletin Today | Personal HealthFor men in their 60s who are diagnosed with early-state prostate cancer, surgery doesn’t help them live significantly longer than those who wait and monitor the slow-growing disease, a landmark new study finds. Prostate cancer affects one in six men, but surgery often causes serious side effects, including urinary incontinence and sexual dysfunction. The results of the federally funded study suggests that a more conservative approach might be better, especially for men with a PSA reading under 10 ng per …

Prostate Test: Why Shouldn’t Men Get Screened, Then Decide?

Posted on 05/22/2012 by | Personal Health and Well-being | Comments

Bulletin Today | Personal HealthFor nearly two decades, middle-aged men have been told by their doctors to have a routine PSA test to screen for prostate cancer. But in a major turn-around, a high-ranking government panel said Monday that after reviewing all available scientific evidence, the conclusion was that the test does more harm than good, only saving one life in 1,000. The panel’s message to men: Don’t bother. What you don’t know (probably) won’t kill you. The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force, which …

Prostate Screening: Older Men Don’t Need It, But Still Get It

Posted on 04/26/2012 by | Personal Health and Well-being | Comments

Bulletin Today | Personal HealthWhen 81-year-old billionaire investor Warren Buffett recently revealed he had been diagnosed with early-stage prostate cancer after a routine screening blood test, many health experts wondered why a man of his age was even being tested for prostate cancer. Federal guidelines, issued in 2008, strongly advised against testing in men age 75 and older, saying it had little to no value. Yet a new study finds that the number of older men receiving the prostate specific antigen (PSA) test has …

PSA Tests: Controversial Study Says They Don’t Save Lives

Posted on 01/9/2012 by | Personal Health and Well-being | Comments

Bulletin Today | Personal HealthWhen the blood test for prostate cancer was introduced 26 years ago, it was seen as a way to save lives. But research since then has questioned this conclusion and a large new study, published last week, adds more doubt to the issue. The  long-term study of 76,000 men ages 55 to 74 found that routine prostate-specific antigen (PSA) testing did not prevent deaths from prostate cancer. However, some prostate cancer experts immediately criticized the study, and even one of the …