Men get prostate screen, balk at colon cancer test

Men apparently find it quite acceptable to get a PSA test to screen for Prostate cancer, but don't go along so readily with being screened for Colorectal cancer, findings from a new study indicate.

Dr. Ruth Carlos wants doctors to approach PSA testing as a "teachable moment" for informing men about tests aimed at cutting Colon cancer risk.

"Men are already paying attention to their cancer risk in one area," she noted in a statement.

"If we can take advantage of that consciousness to educate them about another cancer risk, it might lead to more early detection of colorectal cancer."

Carlos, at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, and her colleagues analyzed data from 22,304 men who participated in the 2002 Behavioral Risk Factors Surveillance Survey.

The analysis showed that 62 percent of men underwent prostate cancer screening, while just 48 percent went along with colon cancer screening, according to a report in the Journal of the American College of Surgeons.

The team found that men who had a PSA test were three times more likely to get a colon cancer test.

"If we can turn the PSA test into an opportunity to encourage men to get their colons checked too, it would take advantage of the public demand for PSA testing," said Carlos.

She also pointed out that colorectal screening might pay bigger dividends than prostate screening. "Colon cancer screening is proven to be effective at reducing deaths from colon cancer, while the effectiveness of the PSA test in reducing mortality continues to be debated," Carlos explained.

SOURCE: Journal of the American College of Surgeons, February 2005.