DISTRIBUTION OF AGE-SPECIFIC PROSTATE SPECIFIC ANTIGEN PROFILES IN MEN BETWEEN 40 AND 80 YEARS TESTED IN A UROLOGY CLINIC IN OGHARA, DELTA STATE, NIGERIA

Abstract

Prostate cancer (PCa) is one of the most common cancers in men, and it is the leading cause of cancer deaths in the world today. PCa is detected via a Prostate Specific Antigen (PSA) test. PSA is a protein produced by malignant and noncancerous tissue in the prostate gland. Although PSA levels grow as a result of prostate cancer, a high PSA test result does not always mean a man has prostate cancer. Several studies have corroborated this assertion of the inability of elevated PSA levels to most effectively indicate carcinoma without necessarily following up with histological examination. This study considered men within the 40 – 80 age bracket, who presented at the Urology Clinic of Delta State University Teaching Hospital. Results showed that whereas the mean PSA value for normotensive participants was 8.0 ng/ml (or the 95^th percentile of 46.6 ng/ml), the mean PSA of 15.3 ng/ml (or 72.2 ng/ml as the 95^th percentile) for those participants with BPH was reported. For study participants with PCa, a mean PSA of 43.2 ng/ml was reported. Although the statutory level for PSA within that age bracket is 4.0 ng/ml, significant increases in the normotensive participants mean that elevated PSA may not have been due to either BPH or carcinoma. Although there was a strong association between PSA levels and PCa based on the Phi and Cramer’s V value of 0.221, sensitivity was 50% and the positive predictive value was less than 20%. With the report of PSA elevations in normotensive individuals, and also with reports of some patients with reported PCa who had low PSA levels, it is suggested PSA levels may not be used in isolation. There is a need therefore to enhance the reliance on PSA or the development of more accurate biomarkers for PCa.