Accuracy doubt UK study questions prostate cancer screening techniques

serum prostate-specific antigen (PSA) level is the main indicator of clinical diagnosis of prostate cancer. British researchers have found that testing PSA levels does not accurately screen for high levels of prostate cancer, and can cause some patients with asymptomatic prostate cancer to be overtreated.
400,000 men aged 50 to 69 were followed by researchers at the University of Bristol and Oxford University. Of these, nearly 190,000 were tested for PSA levels, while nearly 220,000 others were not tested for PSA levels. The results showed that after an average of 10 years, 4.3% of the test group had prostate cancer and the control group had a 3.6% prevalence rate. Notably, 0.29 percent of men died of prostate cancer in both groups.
uk does not have a national prostate cancer screening programme at this stage. The study, funded by Cancer Research UK, is the largest in the medical community to examine the effectiveness of screening prostate cancer at PSA levels.
in a paper published in the latest issue of
, researchers write that patients with high levels of malignant prostate cancer should be detected and treated as early as possible to extend their lives. But some prostate cancer patients show no symptoms and can survive for a considerable period of time, even without treatment. Testing PSA levels alone does not distinguish between these two types of patients, on the one hand, it is not possible to accurately screen patients who need to be treated as soon as possible, on the other hand, it results in patients who do not need medical intervention to receive excessive treatment and a serious reduction in quality of life. Researchers are calling for new tests to be found as soon as possible to accurately screen prostate cancer patients who need treatment.
However, Cancer Research UK prostate cancer specialist Malcolm Mason said men with prostate cancer should still be tested for PSA levels, and men over the age of 50 could apply for tests, but men without symptoms did not need regular tests.
, lead author of the study and a professor at the University of Bristol School of Medicine, said he intends to extend the study for at least five years to assess whether testing PSA levels has a long-term advantage in screening for prostate cancer. (Source: Xinhua News Agency, Wang Xinfang)