Because the statistics do not show a significant longer lifespan on men who undergo treatment for prostate cancer (surgery, radiation, chemotherapy, etc.) many doctors are no longer recommending screening for prostate cancer. This is good news for patients who have stayed away from clinics fearing the dreaded “finger.”
But, Urologists still recommend the blood test PSA and the rectal exam, arguing that some prostate cancers are very aggressive and, if caught early, they can be treated with significant gains in longevity.
In my opinion an integrative approach to this polarized issue is to abandon the rectal exam altogether. In three decades of practice I cannot recall a single patient who benefitted from that torture.
But, I still recommend the PSA, not so much for the reasons noted by Urologists—which make sense in selected cases, especially when the patient demands it—but, because a patient may be offered a non-pharmaceutical, nutritional approach that is safe, and effective in lowering the PSA. When patients see a visible and significant drop they are further motivated to change their lifestyles, and improve their Immuno-Detoxification system.
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Pathology and Lab Medicine 2016 American Society for Clinical Pathology (ASCP) Annual Meeting: PSA Screening Persists Despite Recommendations to Stop.
“Is it time to abandon the digital rectal examination? Lessons from the PLCO Cancer Screening Trial and peer-reviewed literature,”
J. Current Medical Research and Opinion Published online 04 Jul 2016
