Overdiagnosis of Prostate Cancer

Diagnosis and overdiagnosis of prostate cancer: a personal view.

The diagnosis of prostate cancer has been changed by the introduction of prostate-specific antigen (PSA) and transrectal ultrasound (TRUS)–guided springdriven biopsies. Most prostate cancers develop in the peripheral zone of the prostate, and may then be palpated before becoming symptomatic and early enough to be curable. However, digital rectal examination (DRE) is notoriously inaccurate and i...

PSA measurement and prostate cancer--overdiagnosis and overtreatment?

BACKGROUND Growing attention is being paid to PSA testing and the risk of overdiagnosis of prostate cancer. This paper investigates how the number of PSA tests has developed over time in Norwegian counties, and relates this development to the incidence of cancer in the various counties and the rates of prostate cancer surgery. METHOD Data on incidence, survival and mortality were obtained fro...

Empirical estimates of prostate cancer overdiagnosis by age and prostate-specific antigen

BACKGROUND Prostate cancer screening depends on a careful balance of benefits, in terms of reduced prostate cancer mortality, and harms, in terms of overdiagnosis and overtreatment. We aimed to estimate the effect on overdiagnosis of restricting prostate specific antigen (PSA) testing by age and baseline PSA. METHODS Estimates of the effects of age on overdiagnosis were based on population ba...

Overdiagnosis and Overtreatment of Prostate Cancer and Breast Cancer Due to Screening

Overdiagnosis due to prostate-specific antigen screening: lessons from U.S. prostate cancer incidence trends.

BACKGROUND Overdiagnosis of clinically insignificant prostate cancer is considered a major potential drawback of prostate-specific antigen (PSA) screening. Quantitative estimates of the magnitude of this problem are, however, lacking. We estimated rates of prostate cancer overdiagnosis due to PSA testing that are consistent with the observed incidence of prostate cancer in the United States fro...