No more probing for prostate cancer
A new method of testing for prostate cancer has been available for more than a decade, unbeknownst to many men.
Men have been petrified of prostate cancer testing for ages, but they need not fear the violating act any longer.
For many years, the digital rectum examination (DRE) was the only testing method available, but thanks to advancements in medicine, a blood test, known as the prostate-specific antigen (PSA) test, is now the preferred screening approach.
The test measures the level of the protein cells released by the prostate gland where a reading higher than four nanograms per milliliter might indicate an increased change of cancer being present.
Read: Prostate cancer can be treated
“This method has been around for roughly 15 years but the problem is that people simply don’t know about it,” explains Dr Henry Davel of the Springs Medicross centre.
He says prostate cancer is something he takes very seriously.
He tells the stories of three Springs doctors who died of prostate cancer because they waited too long to get tested.
His message to men over the age of 45 years is to not delay testing under any circumstances.
“When the clinical symptoms start, it is often times too late already,” he says.
According to Davel, the most tell-tale sign of possible prostate cancer is difficulty urinating which is due to the position of the prostate in relation to the bladder.
Read: Coming to terms with prostate cancer
Davel also emphasises that times are changing due to the evolution of our lifestyles, and that men might need to start getting tested earlier than the recommended age.
“When I started practising medicine, endometriosis was found in women over 50 years where as now it is being diagnosed in girls as young as 15,” he says.
The blood test is available at most Springs doctors’ offices and laboratories and the cost is covered by most medical aids.
