The potentially curable prostate cancer patient and the pathways leading to diagnosis and treatment
- PMID: 15204421
- DOI: 10.1080/00365590310019990
The potentially curable prostate cancer patient and the pathways leading to diagnosis and treatment
Abstract
Objective: Potentially curable prostate cancer is a diagnostic challenge for the general practitioner (GP). In a defined catchment area we wanted to discover why patients consulted their GPs and the reasons for their referral to the urologist.
Material and methods: Patients remitted to our "early prostate cancer clinic" with suspected potentially curable prostate cancer between January 1997 and December 2000 were included in the study. Patient information was registered according to a prospectively designed protocol.
Results: Of the 872 patients examined, prostate cancer was diagnosed in 41.3% (360/872). Median age was 63.1 years and median total prostate-specific antigen (PSA) level was 8.6 microg/l. The main reason for referral to a urologist was elevated PSA alone. However, the majority of the patients had no urological symptoms when they consulted their GP. As no local or national screening recommendations existed, we believe that opportunistic PSA screening has been common.
Conclusions: The most important reason for referring patients to our specialist clinic was elevated PSA, often detected by means of opportunistic PSA screening. This study shows the effect of PSA testing in real-life practice.
Similar articles
-
[The general practitioner's part in the initiation of diagnostic procedures in prostate cancer].Aktuelle Urol. 2008 Mar;39(2):141-6. doi: 10.1055/s-2007-993037. Aktuelle Urol. 2008. PMID: 18379968 German.
-
Prostate-specific antigen testing in general practice: a survey among 325 general practitioners in Denmark.Scand J Urol Nephrol. 2005;39(3):214-8. doi: 10.1080/00365590510031084. Scand J Urol Nephrol. 2005. PMID: 16118092
-
[The assessment of pathological PSA values by the general practitioner--observation or intervention?].Aktuelle Urol. 2009 May;40(3):171-4. doi: 10.1055/s-0028-1098883. Epub 2009 May 28. Aktuelle Urol. 2009. PMID: 19479670 German.
-
Prognostic value of serum markers for prostate cancer.Scand J Urol Nephrol Suppl. 2005 May;(216):64-81. doi: 10.1080/03008880510030941. Scand J Urol Nephrol Suppl. 2005. PMID: 16019759 Review.
-
Global update on defining and treating high-risk localized prostate cancer with leuprorelin: a USA perspective--identifying men at diagnosis who are at high risk of prostate cancer death after surgery or radiation therapy.BJU Int. 2007 Jan;99 Suppl 1:13-6; discussion 17-8. doi: 10.1111/j.1464-410X.2007.06594.x. BJU Int. 2007. PMID: 17229162 Review.
Cited by
-
Systematic review of clinical features of suspected prostate cancer in primary care.Can Fam Physician. 2015 Jan;61(1):e26-35. Can Fam Physician. 2015. PMID: 25756146 Free PMC article. Review.
-
Guideline for referral of patients with suspected prostate cancer by family physicians and other primary care providers.Can Fam Physician. 2015 Jan;61(1):33-9. Can Fam Physician. 2015. PMID: 25756141 Free PMC article.
-
Clinical features of prostate cancer before diagnosis: a population-based, case-control study.Br J Gen Pract. 2006 Oct;56(531):756-62. Br J Gen Pract. 2006. PMID: 17007705 Free PMC article.
Publication types
MeSH terms
Substances
LinkOut - more resources
Full Text Sources
Medical
Research Materials
Miscellaneous
