MRI Scan Could Spare Some From Prostate Biopsy

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ThinkstockPhotos       MRI Scan Could Spare Some From Prostate Biopsy          If your doctor suspects you have prostate cancer, undergoing a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scan immediately after an initial screening might spare you the medical risks of a prostate biopsy and improve your chances of an accurate diagnosis. The results of a new British study suggest that MRI scans identified aggressive prostate cancers in men with the disease nearly twice as often as a transrectal ultrasound (TRUS)-directed prostate biopsy. However, among men without aggressive prostate cancers, the MRI incorrectly classified the disease more than twice as often as a TRUS-directed prostate biopsy. The study's authors contend that if an MRI was used before biopsy to diagnose prostate cancer: • Nearly one in five deadly cancers missed with current testing methods would be detected • Unnecessary prostate biopsies would be reduced by 27 percent, and • Diagnosis of non-aggressive cancers also would be reduced. The authors, whose findings were published online in January 2017 in The Lancet, note that an MRI scan provides a detailed, computerized image of the prostate and surrounding tissue. By contrast, 12 cores of prostate tissue are taken at random during a TRUS-directed biopsy, so tissue that contains an aggressive cancer elsewhere in the prostate can be missed. They add that biopsies are uncomfortable and can cause bleeding and serious infections, so avoiding some of those procedures would prevent those risks. In the United States, limited access to qualified personnel to interpret prostate MRIs and the added expense of the scan has discouraged many doctors from ordering the test and third-party payers from covering the cost. And an MRI still may not be effective enough to be used routinely to detect—and rule out—malignant prostate cancers.          ThinkstockPhotos       Choosing the Right Treatment for Prostate Cancer       Choosing the Right Treatment for Prostate Cancer is a must-read primer for any man recently diagnosed with prostate cancer who is looking for answers to pressing questions about treatment options. Our specialists explain in depth: active surveillance, nerve-sparing radical prostatectomy... and radiation therapy, including proton beam therapy, EBRT, 3DCRT, IMRT, IGT and brachytherapy. Choosing the Right Treatment for Prostate Cancer takes you step by step through the decision-making process to help you make informed choices.          ORDER NOW              What the study found In The Lancet study, 576 men suspected of having prostate cancer, based on initial screenings or family history, had a standard MRI followed by two types of prostate biopsy—a TRUS-directed biopsy and a prostate-mapping biopsy. The test was performed at hospitals and radiology labs throughout the United Kingdom. The study's authors note that an MRI scan "tends to detect higher-risk disease and systematically overlooks low-risk disease." For men who had prostate cancer that most physicians would recommend treating, the MRI missed 12 percent of the cases while the TRUS-directed biopsy missed 52 percent. But for nonaggressive cancers, the MRI missed 55 percent while the TRUS-directed prostate biopsy misclassified them just 1 percent of the time. "Detecting prostate cancers that need to be treated is a real clinical issue for those of us in the trenches treating prostate disease," says Joel Piser, M.D., a urologist in Berkeley, Calif. "The primary concern in evaluating prostate or bladder symptoms is to rule out a significant malignancy. PSA (prostate-specific antigen) testing has helped but is far from perfect." Piser says he uses the MRI to stage all newly diagnosed prostate cancer patients to gain valuable information on the extent of the disease and to help predict which patients will benefit from treatment versus active surveillance. He says the MRI is a great clinical test to help reduce the chance of missing significant cancers in men who have excessive risk factors for biopsies, such as those with prosthetic heart valves, men taking anticoagulation medication, and for those who have an extreme fear of biopsies. However, not all doctors who treat prostate cancer are convinced that MRI testing will become a part of regular prostate screening just yet. "For that to happen, MRI testing would have to show improved performance in identifying high-grade cancer and would have to be able to exclude high-grade cancer in men without the disease," says H. Ballentine Carter, M.D., professor of urology and oncology at Johns Hopkins School of Medicine in Baltimore. "Further evaluation is needed. In addition, the performance and interpretation of MRIs would need to be standardized." Bottom line If initial screening results from a blood test or digital rectal exam suggest you might have prostate cancer, make an appointment with a urologist for a follow-up evaluation. Make sure it includes a digital rectal exam and a repeat prostate-specific antigen (PSA) test and/or other special blood tests, such as the PHI (prostate health index) or the 4Kscore Test, to determine whether you need a prostate biopsy, Carter says. If the results suggest that a clinically significant prostate cancer may be present, you may want to consider getting an MRI scan to help inform and guide a prostate biopsy.          ThinkstockPhotos       2017 Prostate Disorders White Paper       Did you know... Having sex within 72 hours of your PSA test can produce a false reading? ED can be a symptom of prostate cancer? By age 70, the average man's prostate has doubled in size. Early detection of prostate cancer is a KEY factor in treating this disease successfully. Being fully informed is also important and that's where the 2017 Prostate Disorders White Paper comes in.          ORDER NOW         Newsletter Options This email was sent to tomncher.nopc@blogger.com We're happy to help you unsubscribe. If this email was forwarded to you by another email recipient and you would like to subscribe, click here. Click here to view our privacy policy. This information is not intended to substitute for the advice of a physician.    Contact Us Need to contact us? Click here The Remedy Health Network Berkeley Wellness: science-backed, expert-vetted health and wellness advice HealthCentral: condition news and advice from the community that helps you live your best life The Body: timely HIV/AIDS news, information, support and community        © 2017 Remedy Health Media, LLC ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 750 Third Avenue 6th Floor New York, NY 10017

Great day for a ride

It was a perfect day to ride today. Stephen and I intended to ride 30 miles but made a wrong turn and rode 35 instead.  The weather was a little cool  to start out with but warmed up nicely, without getting too hot.

Check out our “Wrong turn at Sosebee Ride” on Relive! https://www.relive.cc/view/1167881908

Be blessed,

Tom