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Hubby´s first PSA

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Posted 7/11/2015 5:00 PM (GMT 0)
So, I have been on this forum, meeting so many excellent and brave men and women for almost 4 yrs since my father was diagnosed with metastatic PC. Thank God he is doing well even now. I am writing because my husband just had his first PSA ever. I kind of dreaded it because I thought, here you have been worrying about your father for 4 years, reading up on everything and anything about PC, and your hubby has never had a PSA value taken. He had to request it, as it is not part of the plan. He is 45 and his PSA came out to be 1.6. I understand (and he was told of course) that anything less than 4 is great. In the meantime, some of us know from studies this is not necessarily true. My question is what the PSA should be for a man his age. I know that this is low. But shouldn´t it be below 1 or is below 1 value reserved only for the younger ones? He is in excellent shape otherwise, a marathon runner.
Posted 7/11/2015 5:10 PM (GMT 0)
SpecialLady, It really depends on the size of his prostate. The larger the prostate the more PSA it produces. I think the formula is something like .06 for every CC of prostate.
Posted 7/11/2015 6:20 PM (GMT 0)
It's great that you are being proactive. You have a baseline. If I had it to do over again, I would request another test in 6 mos to a year to see if there was a rise. Wish we had it to do over again...but since it is what it is, I will encourage being proactive! Best wishes to your Dad. You are a good daughter and wife!
Posted 7/11/2015 6:48 PM (GMT 0)
SpecialLady, I would concur. A single reading is of minimal value. Another reading 6 months or a year from now will truly establish baseline for him. If, 6 months from now it's still in the 1.5 +/- range, no worries. I suppose I shouldn't ask...but I will anyway. Did he do anything in the 48 hrs before the blood draw to irritate the prostate?
Posted 7/11/2015 6:52 PM (GMT 0)
SL, I agree with the others...there is no real way at this point to know if his 1.6 is "normal" but at least we know that on the surface it is not bad. You now have a baseline; follow up routinely to see if it changes significantly. And, no irritating activities with 48 hours of the test...

Jim
Posted 7/11/2015 8:09 PM (GMT 0)
Thanks so much for answering. I totally forgot to tell him about the irritating activities, I am away with kids for a week, so theoretically not :) and he only rides bikes occassionally...Thanks guys for reminding me how important "baseline" is and that it will serve as comparison for all future measurements.
Posted 7/11/2015 8:58 PM (GMT 0)
This study might be of interest: urologytimes.modernmedicine.com/urology-times/content/tags/andrew-vickers/single-psa-test-45-may-predict-aggressive-pca?page=full

"The big take-home message is that a single PSA test at age 45 can be used to predict a man’s long-term risk of developing an aggressive prostate cancer,"
Posted 7/11/2015 9:39 PM (GMT 0)
Wow, super max, thank you, that really sums it up:



-Men with a PSA level of 1.0 ng/mL or higher at age 45 are at an above-average risk of developing life-threatening prostate cancer. These men should be regularly screened for changes in PSA level until around age 70, with repeat PSA testing.

-Men with a PSA level at or below 1.0 ng/mL should have two additional PSA tests, one in their early 50s and another at 60 years of age to ensure that their PSA levels remain low. Testing is not necessary after age 60 because any cancer that develops will likely be slow growing and not life threatening, according to the researchers.

So, regular screening from now on, no skipping.
Posted 7/12/2015 2:58 PM (GMT 0)
My urologist insisted on annual tests from age 40, despite no family history. Why wouldn't you? Not a big deal (though he does have sausage fingers) and earlier is better re warning signs. I am very thankful to him for his insistence and vigilance.
Posted 7/12/2015 3:05 PM (GMT 0)

We can do this said...
My urologist insisted on annual tests from age 40, despite no family history. Why wouldn't you? Not a big deal (though he does have sausage fingers) and earlier is better re warning signs. I am very thankful to him for his insistence and vigilance.

Sausage Fingers! smhair

I learned to take a glance at the rack of gloves hanging on the wall. If the most-used box was the extra larges, that added to the anxiety.
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