Prostate Cancer Screening
What is screening?
Screening is testing for disease before symptoms appear. Early prostate cancer usually has no warning signs, so screening is crucial.
Why do I need it?
When caught early, prostate cancer is 99% curable.
Once prostate cancer has spread outside the pelvis, it can be treated but not cured.
Who is at higher risk?
Anyone with a prostate can develop prostate cancer, but risk is highest for:
- Older men
- Black (African American) men
- Men with a family history of prostate cancer and some other cancers
Important facts about risk
Black men in the U.S. have the highest prostate cancer rates in the world — about 1 in 6 will be diagnosed in their lifetime.
Black men are twice as likely to die from the disease.
Having a close relative (father, grandfather, brother, uncle) with prostate cancer can more than double your risk.
A family history of certain other cancers may also increase risk. These include breast, ovarian, pancreatic, and colon cancer, on either side of your family.
If you’re at higher risk, we recommend you start prostate cancer screening by age 40. Early detection can save your life.
Screening starts with a simple blood test
You may have heard that prostate cancer screening requires an invasive exam. This is untrue. It’s a simple blood test that measures prostate-specific antigen (PSA), a protein made by the prostate and released in small amounts into the blood.
PSA almost always rises before prostate cancer symptoms start. That’s why the PSA test is key to finding prostate cancer early.
Take-home message
Screen for prostate cancer with a simple PSA blood test. Early detection saves lives.