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The American Urologic Association (AUA) changed their guidelines regarding screening for prostate cancer.  The AUA now recommends AGAINST all routine prostate-specific antigen (PSA) testing.  It also recommends against screening men older than 70, men younger than 40 and average-risk men between ages 40-54.

This is a significant change.  This means that health fairs and hospital screening events should not offer PSA.

There is still some controversy regarding high-risk men 40-54 (like those with a strong family history of prostate cancer) and all men 55-69.  The AUA now calls for physicians to discuss the “limited potential benefits and substantial harms of screening for prostate cancer” with these patients whereas other screening organizations like the US Preventive Services Task Force and the American Academy of Family Physicians states that the PSA shouldn’t be used at all.

The AUA admits that for men ages 55-69 the decision to undergo PSA screening involves weighing the benefits of preventing prostate cancer mortality in 1 man for every 1,000 men screened over a decade against the know potential harms associated with screening and treatment (incontinence and impotence).

Interesting controversy…