How much value to put on the numbers in the Decipher Grid?

I recommend watching the attached video that explains the Decipher GRID report, page by page.

It’s narrated by Dr. Ashley Ross MD PhD, a Urologic Oncologist and Associate Professor of Urology at Northwestern Medicine.

Even so, this report was the primary reason I chose AS…as it was the recommended choice of treatment, in my case…see the 2nd page of my GRID report attached….the Clinical-Genomic Risk Model.

All the best

Thanks! The video us helpful. Still interested in how to interpret specific markers, in case anyone has information.

@topf
I think you can learn a lot from watching videos, etc. Sometimes I find it can be overwhelming and confusing. You can read one study that contradicts another. And cutting-edge new testing methods and research that changes every day.

Write down your questions and why you are asking and ask your medical providers what this means and why. If you don't trust the medical providers, you are seeing to give you the latest and most accurate feedback of answers to your questions then consider like many of us have done and suggest is to seek a second opinion or different medical provider.

The Decipher test has a ton of information to try and understand. I know at Mayo the information on prostate cancer diagnosis, treatments, etc. is changing so dramatically I learned something each time I see my PCP and R/O.

Thanks for the response! My providers don’t really discuss the grid. I assume that is because it is still for research purposes only. My own search gor related papers has been mostly unsuccessful.

My experience exactly…the details in the GRID report are “down in the weeds” for most urology general practitioners.

The details in the GRID report are primarily directed toward those doing research in the field of PCa.

It requires boatloads of time to analyze and study by those highly trained in this field…this is why it isn’t on the “to do list” for the 15-30 minutes appointments doctors have with their PCa patients.

My research specialty includes 30 patents and many published technical papers and presentations in the field of flame resistant fibers, carbonized felts, redox flow batteries, carbon composite materials and thermal barriers for batteries in electric vehicles (among other things)….all having nothing to do with PCa….however, I know the principles behind conducting and reporting on subjects that one spends years studying and researching.

All this said, the only place I have ever found that is able to provide some level of reliable interpretation of all my detailed results from the Decipher GRID report are AI engines that never get tired of detailed exploratory questions.

They actually provide more detailed answers than you’d care to read, but you need to have entered every detail of the information provided in the GRID report, along with with your detailed biopsy report, PSA level tests and mpMRI reports. All as background information for the AI engine to consider in its answers to your micro detailed questions.

I have spent days with AI engines and entering every detail of every report I have ever received and then pummeled the AI engine with endless questions…you’d be amazed of how much incredible insight you can obtain, if you methodically follow this strategy.

However be prepared to work many hours preparing your test results and reports and the scores of detailed questions you want to have answered.

This approach means you don’t have to wait to see a physician who has limited time and (most likely) limited knowledge about the specifics of the latest research, as compared to the collective sum of the knowledge available to the AI engine.

Alternatively, go to your physician(s); but expect standard generalized answers that can be communicated in 30
minutes or less.

As they say….no pain…no gain.

All the best!

I did quiz ChatGPT on it, but I am not sure how reliable the answers are. It also changes opinion depending on how the question is framed.

I quit ChatGPT months ago. I currently find Grok3 the best, but I like perplexity.ai and OpenEvidence.com for certain types of inquiries.

Mark Scholz MD, 20 year prostate medical oncologist, who founded the Prostate Cancer Research Institute [pcri.org] commented on the genomic tests. He said that the risk assessments are based on old historical data. Presumably he meant before mpMRIs, PSMA PETCT scans. As I recall he found that the RISK prognostications were too pessimistic.

Yes, I saw that. He was mainly referring to the 15 year mortality risk. You need 15+ year old sata to estimTe that and mortality has drastically decreased since then. I don’t know if metastatic risk has decreased too.

My understanding is that the grid is still research in progress as the Decipher test is evolving. Jt would be interesting to know what the current state of knowledge is on these characteristics. In my case, e.g., what the implications of high glycolisis would be.

How did you access OpenEvidence without an NPI? Or do you have one?