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Abstract
Objective: The large increase in the incidence of prostate cancer is largely due to testing of serum levels of prostate‐specific antigen (PSA). Little is known about how PSA testing is used in clinical practice outside of screening programmes. Essentially, PSA can be used in the health check‐ups of men without symptoms as a form of non‐systematic screening or in the work‐up of symptomatic patients. The aim of this study was to investigate the cause of initiating a work‐up leading to a diagnosis of prostate cancer, with emphasis on T1c tumours.
Material and Methods: Data on the cause of initiation of work‐up leading to a diagnosis of prostate cancer were retrieved from the National Prostate Cancer Registry for 6361 incident cases in tumour category T1c and local stages T2, T3 and T4 registered in Sweden in 2000.
Results: For 1496 cases in tumour category T1c (non‐palpable tumours detected during work‐up of elevated PSA), the cause of PSA testing was health check‐ups in 32% of cases, work‐up of symptoms suspected to emanate from the prostate in 51% and other causes/not reported in 17%. For all stages combined, the cause of initiation of the diagnostic work‐up was health check‐ups in 18% of cases, symptoms in 68% and other causes/not reported in 14%.
Conclusion: Non‐systematic screening using PSA testing has been introduced in Sweden. However, prostate cancer is still most commonly diagnosed during the work‐up of symptomatic patients.