Article Figures & Data
Tables
- Table 1.
Discussion of Prostate-Specific Antigen (PSA) Tests by Sociodemographic and Screening Variables
Characteristics Percent* n* P Value * Unweighted n and weighted percent. Race/ethnicity .024 Non-Hispanic white 62.2 1,717 African American 73.8 228 Hispanic 62.5 192 Other 70.1 47 Age category, years .951 50–64 63.5 1,136 65–74 63.5 656 75 or older 62.6 392 Marital status .158 Not married 60.4 677 Married 64.0 1,503 Education .740 Less than high school 65.2 437 High school graduate/general equivalency diploma 62.4 588 Some college 63.2 1,138 Usual source of care <.001 No source 37.9 79 Regular source 64.1 2,104 Health insurance .714 Medicare/other public 64.1 1,132 Private 62.4 970 None 65.8 75 Family history .431 No history of prostate cancer 63.6 2,037 Family history 59.8 147 Initial suggestion for test <.001 From physician 66.6 1,697 From patient or other 59.8 474 Recency of testing <.001 Within past year 65.9 1,475 More than 1 year 57.5 709 Any previous abnormal PSA result .239 Abnormal result 68.5 132 No abnormal result 63.0 2,050 Tests in past 5 years .012 None 52.5 79 1 57.4 574 2 65.9 342 3 or 4 64.4 327 5 or more 67.9 786 - Table 2.
Weighted Logistic Regression Predicting Discussion of Prostate-Specific Antigen Test: Adjusted Odds Ratios and 95% Confidence Intervals
Variable Adjusted Odds Ratio 95% Confidence Interval * P <.05 † P <.01 ‡ P <.001 Race/ethnicity* Non-Hispanic white 1.00 African American 1.73 1.19–2.51 Hispanic 1.21 .82–1.78 Other 1.12 .54–2.32 Usual source of care† No 1.00 Yes 2.43 1.39–4.24 Family history No 1.00 Yes .89 .59–1.34 Initial suggestion‡ Physician 1.77 1.40–2.23 Other 1.00 Timing Within past year 1.18 .93–1.50 More than 1 year 1.00 Number tests in 5 y 1.06 1.00–1.44 Any abnormal result Yes 1.05 .69–1.60 None 1.00
Additional Files
The Article in Brief
Background Medical professionals disagree about whether the PSA (prostate-specific antigen) test is a helpful tool in screening men for prostate cancer, and whether prostate cancer screening should be recommended for men older than 50 years. It is recommended that doctors inform men about the benefits and risks of prostate cancer screening, so that they can make their own informed decisions. This study looks at whether men who receive a PSA test discuss the test with their doctors in advance, as well as other factors that might be related to such discussions.
What This Study Found About 60% of men who received a PSA test discussed the pros and cons of the test with their doctors in advance. Discussions were more likely to occur with African American men, with men who had an established source of medical care, and when the doctor suggested the test.
Implications
- These findings suggest that doctors are aware that African American men are at greater risk of prostate cancer and are addressing prostate cancer screening in their office visits.
- Topics for future study include the effect of the medical practice setting and the patient-doctor relationship on the discussion of prostate cancer screening, and methods for getting patients actively
