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Prostate Cancer Testing

Cancer | Last Active: Apr 4 10:51am | Replies (15)

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@northoftheborder

It's an open debate right now. The problem is that 10–20 years ago, when life expectancy was shorter, diagnostic tools were weaker, and treatments were more limited, doctors were overtreating prostate cancer in older men "just to be safe." Then there was a pushback, assuming 75 year olds were going to die very soon anyway, so why waste time checking for or treating prostate cancer? 😕

These days, there are much better tools available (including active surveillance for very-low and sometimes even low-grade cancer), so the medical community no longer needs to take a "see-no-evil" eyes-closed approach to PSA over the age of 75, but it takes a long time for new practices to spread to smaller hospitals and individual practitioners, much less public websites.

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Replies to "It's an open debate right now. The problem is that 10–20 years ago, when life expectancy..."

@northoftheborder
Very well said. I think I said the same thing just not as good commuincator and writer as you are.