Annals
Established in 1927 by the American College of Physicians
:
Advanced search
 
box Article
 arrow  Table of Contents                
space
 arrow  Full Text of this article Free
space
 arrow  Figures/Tables List
space
box Services
 arrow  Send comment/rapid response letter
space
 arrow  Notify a friend about this article
space
 arrow  Alert me when this article is cited
space
 arrow  Add to Personal Archive
space
 arrow  Download to Citation Manager
space
 arrow  ACP Search                        
space
 arrow  Get Permissions
space
box Google Scholar
 arrow  Search for Related Content
space
box PubMed
Articles in PubMed by Author:
  arrow  Coley, C. M.
space
  arrow  Mulley, A. G.
space
 arrow  Related Articles in PubMed
space
 arrow  PubMed Citation
space
 arrow  PubMed
space

POSITION PAPER

CLINICAL GUIDELINE: PART 1: Early Detection of Prostate Cancer: Part I

Prior Probability and Effectiveness of Tests

right arrow Christopher M. Coley, MD; Michael J. Barry, MD; Craig Fleming, MD; and Albert G. Mulley, MD, MPP

1 March 1997 | Volume 126 Issue 5 | Pages 394-406

Purpose: To estimate the prevalence of clinically important prostate cancer and to evaluate the effectiveness of digital rectal examination and measurement of prostate-specific antigen (PSA) in early detection of prostate cancer.

Data Sources: Relevant studies were identified from a structured MEDLINE search (1966 to 1995), reviews, bibliographies of retrieved articles, author files, and abstracts.

Study Selection: Articles selected for analysis of test effectiveness were prospective cohort studies of early detection that did not have obvious selection bias.

Data Extraction: Likelihood ratios for digital rectal examination and PSA measurement were estimated from studies that specified the age distribution of participants.

Data Synthesis: In patients who have abnormalities on digital rectal examination, the risk for a large, intracapsular tumor is increased twofold but the risk for extracapsular disease is increased threefold to ninefold. An elevation in PSA level greater than 4 ng/mL increases the odds of intracapsular tumors by as much as threefold and the odds of extracapsular tumors by threefold to fivefold. For studies in which biopsies were done if results of either test were abnormal, 18% to 26% of screened patients had suspicious results, cancer detection rates were approximately 4%, and the positive predictive value of the tests combined was 15% to 21%. Men who have lower urinary tract symptoms that are consistent with benign prostatic hyperplasia are not more likely to harbor prostate cancer; the specificity of PSA measurement is considerably lower among these men.

Conclusions: Larger-volume tumors of the prostate are common among older men. Available tests for the early detection of cancer have limited specificity, which necessitates a relatively high biopsy rate. The positive predictive value of combined digital rectal examination and PSA measurement has been defined, but the negative predictive value is less clear. Measurement of PSA is the most sensitive noninvasive test for prostate cancer. However, digital rectal examination detects cancer that would otherwise be missed by PSA measurement.

Author and Article Information
space

From Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts; and Health Outcomes Associates, Vancouver, Washington.
Note: Much of the analytic work presented in this paper is that of the Patient Outcomes Research Team for Prostatic Diseases and was done under contract K3-0546.0 from the Office of Technology Assessment, U.S. Congress. The conclusions are solely those of the authors and do not represent the views of the Office of Technology Assessment, the Technology Assessment Board, or the U.S. Congress.
Grant Support: In part by grant HS-08397 from the Agency for Health Care Policy and Research (Patient Outcomes Research Team for Prostatic Diseases).
Requests for Reprints: Michael J. Barry, MD, Medical Practices Evaluation Center, Massachusetts General Hospital, 50 Staniford Street, Boston, MA 02114.
Current Author Addresses: Dr. Coley: Harvard University Health Services, 75 Mount Auburn Street, Cambridge, MA 02138.




This article has been cited by other articles:


Home page
J Ultrasound MedHome page
A. T. Turgut, E. Olcucuoglu, P. Kosar, P. O. Geyik, U. Kosar, and V. Dogra
Power Doppler Ultrasonography of the Feeding Arteries of the Prostate Gland: A Novel Approach to the Diagnosis of Prostate Cancer?
J. Ultrasound Med., July 1, 2007; 26(7): 875 - 883.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]


Home page
Am. J. Public HealthHome page
E. C. Y. Chan, S. W. Vernon, C. Ahn, and A. Greisinger
Do Men Know That They Have Had a Prostate-Specific Antigen Test? Accuracy of Self-Reports of Testing at 2 Sites
Am J Public Health, August 1, 2004; 94(8): 1336 - 1338.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]


Home page
Arch Intern MedHome page
G. D. Murthy, D. P. Byron, and D. Pasquale
Underutilization of Digital Rectal Examination When Screening for Prostate Cancer
Arch Intern Med, February 9, 2004; 164(3): 313 - 316.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]


Home page
JCOHome page
L. W. Chan, M. A. Moses, E. Goley, M. Sproull, T. Muanza, C. N. Coleman, W. D. Figg, P. S. Albert, C. Menard, and K. Camphausen
Urinary VEGF and MMP Levels As Predictive Markers of 1-Year Progression-Free Survival in Cancer Patients Treated With Radiation Therapy: A Longitudinal Study of Protein Kinetics Throughout Tumor Progression and Therapy
J. Clin. Oncol., February 1, 2004; 22(3): 499 - 506.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]


Home page
Med Decis MakingHome page
P. C. Sorum, J. Shim, G. Chasseigne, S. Bonnin-Scaon, J. Cogneau, and E. Mullet
Why do Primary Care Physicians in the United States and France Order Prostate-Specific Antigen Tests for Asymptomatic Patients?
Med Decis Making, July 1, 2003; 23(4): 301 - 313.
[Abstract] [PDF]


Home page
Am. J. Public HealthHome page
E. C. Y. Chan, S. W. Vernon, F. T. O'Donnell, C. Ahn, A. Greisinger, and D. W. Aga
Informed Consent for Cancer Screening With Prostate-Specific Antigen: How Well Are Men Getting the Message?
Am J Public Health, May 1, 2003; 93(5): 779 - 785.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]


Home page
Postgrad. Med. J.Home page
D Mazhar and J Waxman
Prostate cancer
Postgrad. Med. J., October 1, 2002; 78(924): 590 - 595.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]


Home page
Cancer Res.Home page
B.-L. Adam, Y. Qu, J. W. Davis, M. D. Ward, M. A. Clements, L. H. Cazares, O. J. Semmes, P. F. Schellhammer, Y. Yasui, Z. Feng, et al.
Serum Protein Fingerprinting Coupled with a Pattern-matching Algorithm Distinguishes Prostate Cancer from Benign Prostate Hyperplasia and Healthy Men
Cancer Res., July 1, 2002; 62(13): 3609 - 3614.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]


Home page
ANN INTERN MEDHome page
H. C. Sox
Disease Prevention Guidelines from the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force
Ann Intern Med, January 15, 2002; 136(2): 155 - 156.
[Full Text] [PDF]


Home page
J. Clin. Endocrinol. Metab.Home page
S. M. Harman, E. J. Metter, M. R. Blackman, P. K. Landis, and H. B. Carter
Serum Levels of Insulin-Like Growth Factor I (IGF-I), IGF-II, IGF-Binding Protein-3, and Prostate-Specific Antigen as Predictors of Clinical Prostate Cancer
J. Clin. Endocrinol. Metab., November 1, 2000; 85(11): 4258 - 4265.
[Abstract] [Full Text]


Home page
Journal of Family NursingHome page
M. E. O'Rourke and B. B. Germino
From Two Perspectives to One Choice: Blending Couple and Individual Views of Prostate Cancer Treatment Selection
Journal of Family Nursing, August 1, 2000; 6(3): 231 - 251.
[Abstract] [PDF]


Home page
CMAJHome page
S. A. Grover, L. Coupal, H. Zowall, R. Rajan, J. Trachtenberg, M. Elhilali, M. Chetner, and L. Goldenberg
The clinical burden of prostate cancer in Canada: forecasts from the Montreal Prostate Cancer Model
Can. Med. Assoc. J., April 1, 2000; 162(7): 977 - 983.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]


Home page
CMAJHome page
S. A. Grover, L. Coupal, H. Zowall, R. Rajan, J. Trachtenberg, M. Elhilali, M. Chetner, and L. Goldenberg
The economic burden of prostate cancer in Canada: forecasts from the Montreal Prostate Cancer Model
Can. Med. Assoc. J., April 1, 2000; 162(7): 987 - 992.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]


Home page
Arch Fam MedHome page
R. J. Volk, A. R. Cass, and S. J. Spann
A Randomized Controlled Trial of Shared Decision Making for Prostate Cancer Screening
Arch Fam Med, July 1, 1999; 8(4): 333 - 340.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]


Home page
JAMAHome page
S. Stern, D. Altkorn, and W. Levinson
Detection of Prostate and Colon Cancer
JAMA, July 8, 1998; 280(2): 117 - 118.
[Full Text] [PDF]




 Home | Current Issue | Past Issues | In the Clinic | ACP Journal Club | CME | Collections | Audio/Video | Mobile | Subscribe | Tools | Help | ACP Online 

Copyright © 1997 by the American College of Physicians.