When Should A PSA Test Be Done?

Posted on Wed, 16 Jul 2014

Medically reviewed by Ask A Doctor - 24x7 Medical Review Team

Wed, 16 Jul 2014 Answered on

Tue, 5 Aug 2014 Last reviewed on

Question : I recently went in for my annual physical, and had concerns when I left the office. I have a new physician since my last physician retired. My father had Prostrate Cancer at the age of 56. Since I was getting labs ordered for cholesterol, liver functions etc, I asked for a PSA test. This physician declined my request as he stated it was not needed. I felt like I did not have a physical based on my concerns, as I did not take my shirt off or drop my pants. Should I be concern? This physician is fresh out of Residency. Should I see a internist instead of a family physician?

Answered by Dr. Prashant Sharma (40 minutes later)

Brief Answer:
discuss and get a baseline PSA value

Detailed Answer:
hi dear. as ur father had prostatic cancer so u are at a slightly higher risk of getting it. presently ur age is 51, so u should start screening for ca prostate. but u should also understand that single elevated value of PSA does't have much importance until it is very high. more important is PSA velocity i.e. continuous increase in psa.
presently do't panic. different countries have different guidelines, which may differ slightly. if u want to learn more u can login to nccn.org site and read prostate cancer screening guidelines for patients. PSA screening is still a debatable issue because of non-significant gain sometimes.
feel free to ask further.

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Vinay Bhardwaj