Test Your Knowledge is a fun little quiz that covers five major topics related to prostate cancer: prevention, symptoms, screening, diagnosis, and treatment. You will, therefore, find below five questions testing your knowledge which relates to the third topic being screening. You will find the answers at the bottom of the page. Have fun and learn more about prostate cancer!

Test your knowledge in 5 questions

We don’t get screened for prostate cancer if there are no symptoms
TRUE or FALSE

Younger men have higher PSA levels than older men
TRUE or FALSE

Which of the following factors does not cause an elevation of a PSA?
A – An enlarged prostate (BPH)
B – Alcohol and tobacco
C – A prostate biopsy
D – A prostate infection
E – An ejaculation

Above normal PSA level means you have prostate cancer
TRUE or FALSE

An increase in PSA from year to year may be a better marker for prostate cancer than a number greater than 4 ng/ml that does not increase
TRUE or FALSE

Answers

We do not screen for prostate cancer if there are no symptoms
Thank you for your participation. The answer is FALSE!

As prostate cancer develops “in silence” in the majority of cases, a man can live with this disease without suspecting anything, until it is detected by chance (we are not talking about cancers here latent that will never be detected, but of those that are clinically significant and that we end up diagnosing).

It’s a fact, 80% of prostate cancers are discovered by chance during a routine exam. They did not start to cause symptoms and the men are feeling quite well. Sometimes the disease is in its infancy, sometimes it is quite advanced. In fact, sometimes cancer has reached the pelvic nodes and even the bones without causing a single symptom. This occurs when the tumor in the prostate has remained small enough and has spread elsewhere without the metastases becoming large enough to cause noticeable health problems.

Doctors are able to detect prostate cancer today before anyone even suspects its presence, it is largely thanks to the prostate-specific antigen (PSA) test, used as a screening tool for about 30 years. Thanks to this test, the disease can be treated earlier and patients have a better chance of recovery. But there are pros and cons.

From the age of 50, men who have a life expectancy of more than 10 years should discuss screening for prostate cancer with their family doctor. This discussion should take place at age 45 if there are risk factors (black men, family history of cancer, etc.)

Younger men have higher PSA levels than older men
Thanks for participating. The answer is FALSE!

On the contrary, older men have higher PSA levels than younger men, their prostate growing in size with age. In the absence of prostate cancer, infection or other prostate irritation, PSA levels increase by about 0.5 nanograms per milliliter every 10 years. The increase is very gradual. A more sudden increase in PSA level from year to year may indicate a problem.

Reference: Harvard Medical School / Prostate Knowledge

Which of the following factors does not cause an elevation in PSA?
Thank you for your participation! The answer is B!

Which of the following factors does not cause an elevation of a PSA?
A – An enlarged prostate (BPH)
B – Alcohol and tobacco
C – A prostate biopsy
D – A prostate infection
E – An ejaculation

A higher than normal PSA level means that you have prostate cancer.
Thank you for your participation. The answer is FALSE!

Most men with PSA levels above 4 do not have prostate cancer. If your doctor does not feel any irregularity on your prostate during a digital rectal examination, the risk of prostate cancer is less than one in three. Reasons for elevated PSA other than cancer include, but are not limited to, benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH), infection of the prostate or bladder, long bike ride, placement of a urinary catheter 48 hours before the blood test, among others. Click here to learn more about the factors that can influence PSA levels and the advantages and disadvantages of screening.

Reference: Harvard Health Publication / Harvard Medical School

An increase in PSA from one year to the next can be a better marker for prostate cancer than a number greater than 4 ng/ml which does not increase
Thank you for your participation. The answer is TRUE!

This is called the kinetics of APS (speed in how long). The PSA velocity or the PSA doubling time measures the change in your PSA rate over time. Men with enlarged prostates (benign prostatic hyperplasia or BPH) may experience minimal increases in their PSA levels from year to year; the more cells in the prostate, the more PSA they produce, even in the absence of cancer. A higher PSA level may suggest irritation of the prostate (inflammation or infection of the prostate); in most cases, the rate returns to normal as a result of the healing of the inflammation or infection.

A rate of PSA that continues to climb from test to test or whose increase is unexpected becomes suspect. For example, a PSA rate that suddenly goes from 1.0 to 3.0 can be considered suspect. However, a PSA level of 3.0 that does not move will be considered normal. If your doctor has any doubts, he will refer you to a urologist for further action.

Take the time to visit each of our pages on this website, as well as our YouTube channel, in order to get familiar with the disease with our expert lectures, our section on available resources, the support that is offered to you.

Do you have any questions or concerns? Above all, do not hesitate. Contact us at 1 855 899-2873 to discuss with a nurse specializing in uro-oncology. It’s simple and free, like all our services.

Pages of our site that might interest you
Want to know more? Just click on one of the links below.
Recognize the signs and symptoms
Prostate-related diseases

PROCURE news that may interest you
Each week, we publish a blog article. Here are a few for you.
Prostate Cancer: Did You Say Zero Symptoms?
Top 5 Men’s Health Risks
PSA Test: Yes, No, Maybe?

Written by PROCURE. © All rights reserved – 2019