Testing: Mixed Review for Prostate Exams

By ERIC NAGOURNEY

creening men for signs of prostate cancer can be an accurate way to predict the disease, but there is no evidence that it does anything to reduce deaths from the disease, a federal health advisory panel is reporting today.

The findings, being published in the journal Annals of Internal Medicine, come from the federal Preventive Services Task Force, which advises the government on health policy.

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While the panel did not oppose the tests, it did not endorse them, saying evidence was insufficient. As results come in from long-term studies, a more definitive answer may emerge, officials said.

The findings, in keeping with those of major medical groups, are slightly more supportive of prostate cancer screening than an earlier report issued by the panel.

Prostate cancer is diagnosed in 189,000 Americans a year and kills more than 30,000. To check for it, doctors can manually examine the prostate for growths or enlargements and check the blood for prostate-specific antigens, which can indicate cancer.

The federal study found that each examination could detect the cancer, but added that it was unclear whether either reduced mortality from the disease.

Prostate cancer can grow so slowly that many men die of another cause before the cancer spreads, the study said. Telling them they have cancer may cause needless stress, the report said. And high antigen levels are sometimes caused by noncancerous problems.

"Is it a benefit for them to be anxious for the next 20 years, wondering if they are going to die of prostate cancer?" asked Dr. Alfred O. Berg of the University of Washington, the chairman of the task force.

Men being treated also face a risk from surgical procedures and side effects.