Quote:
Originally Posted by redtrummy
Our GP will not do a PSA test unless you have been designated high risk (your Dad had it)
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I'd ask another GP - a genetic connection raises the risk of prostate cancer but it's common in men without it, too.
My Dad didn't have it (he had dementia and cancer of the salivary glands), I just asked for a PSA test and got one (about 3 years ago). My PSA was 9 and the NHS has a fast track policy for you to see a consultant (where you get the dreaded DRE - digital rectal exam) if your PSA is high.
I then had an MRI which took us in a whole new direction because of a shadow on my colon (the prostate looked ok). One sigmoidoscopy and one colonoscopy later they decided it was a machine fault. (I had asked for the colonoscopy since my Mum had suffered colon cancer). Meanwhile my PSA is still in the 9's (slowly climbing).
I keep getting different consultants who tend to pull in different directions and the last one wanted me to have a multi-parametric MRI (same machine but they inject you with a tracing element for greater resolution). Didn't show anything and I'm due another PSA test and consultant chat imminently.
Your prostate gets bigger as you age and the bigger the prostate the higher the PSA. The problem with the PSA test is that it can give false positives and false negatives but it is all we have. As Craig mentioned the next step can be a biopsy (6-12 needle injections into the prostate via your derriere). Painful and there's no guarantee they will hit the tumour although the multi-pMRI is their guide. It can also introduce infections.
As the prostate grows it presses on the urethra which is often linked to the need to frequently urinate at night. The prescribed drug Tamsulosin helps with that.