Prostate cancer is not just an old man’s disease. Young men can get it too and Dr. David Samadi shines a light explaining why men younger than age 50 should get a PSA test as a baseline for comparison in the future.
Read MoreM who choose ‘active surveillance’ do not follow up with tests and office visits as they should be.
Read MoreWe are always looking for the best foods for our health, and although there are foods that are generally beneficial to our bodies – certain foods are just better for certain things. Let’s take a look at the best foods for men and a healthy prostate:
Read MoreMy PSA is elevated, but I keep having negative biopsies. What does this mean?” This is a common question among many men under the care of a urologist. If you are familiar with prostate cancer,
Read MoreErectile dysfunction is the inability to achieve and/or sustain an erection adequate for sexual intercourse. A concern for many men with a diagnosis of prostate cancer is whether or not they will still be as sexually functional as they were prior to having received treatment. It can be both physically and emotionally taxing to cope with. It’s important to understand that prostate cancer is not the direct cause for erectile dysfunction, although certain treatments for the disease can directly cause the condition.
Read MoreProstate cancer is the second most common cancer among men in the United States. African-Americans have the highest risk of developing prostate cancer among any other racial group. Prostate cancer in African-American men also tends to be more aggressive.
Key statistics about African-American men and prostate cancer:
Read MorePSA stands for prostate specific antigen. It is a protein in the blood and is measured by taking a person’s blood to identify the amount of PSA that is present within the blood. PSA is important to measure once a man gets older because if the level is abnormal, or elevated, it may indicate a number of prostate conditions, including prostate cancer.
Read MoreAn elevated PSA can mean a number of underlying conditions. Many people often associate an elevated PSA with prostate cancer, but that is not always the case. While prostate cancer is very common among older men, there are other conditions that may be affecting the prostate that could be the reason for developing an elevated PSA.
Read MoreA “normal” PSA level is generally between 1.0 and 4.0 ng/mL. Anything above 4.0ng/mL is considered “abnormal” or elevated. The PSA level may differ depending on a man’s age. As men age, the prostate gets larger. A larger prostate produces more PSA. Therefore, younger men generally have lower PSA levels while older men tend to have higher PSA levels. These variations in PSA levels are not always associated with a prostate condition, other than an enlarged prostate. The PSA level may also vary depending on the man’s ethnicity or if they have a family history of prostate cancer.
Read MoreProstate cancer effects millions of men each year, whether newly diagnosed or living with prostate cancer. Despite the amount of lives this cancer affects, the tools for diagnosis fall short. For this reason it is important to use the tools that we do have to their fullest capacity. The percent free PSA, for instance.
Read MoreA PSA test is a blood test used to measure the level of PSA in the blood. Many have heard the 3 letter abbreviation, especially if you are a man over 50, but what exactly is a PSA? PSA is the abbreviation for Prostate-Specific Antigen, which is a protein produced by the cells of the prostate gland. The PSA is often called a biological or tumor marker because it can be used to detect disease. The disease in this case is prostate cancer. Therefore the PSA test measures the level of PSA in the blood, like we mentioned above, in order to screen for prostate cancer.
Read MoreThe PSA blood test is often the first step in screening for prostate cancer. It is included in a two-part screening process that also includes the digital rectal exam (DRE). Since the PSA is not prostate-cancer specific, abnormal results are further, or an elevated PSA is not a diagnosis for cancer. Things like evaluating a patient, knowing their medical and family history, following a PSA trend, as well as the velocity at which PSA changes can help a physician make an informed decision about what an elevated PSA might mean. Because PSA tests are not necessarily straightforward, simple or easy diagnostic tools, knowing the risk factors and tracking the changes in PSA can help you and your physician interpret a PSA properly.
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