Q&A

False-positive PSA associated with increased worry and fears

Author and Disclosure Information

  • Clinical Question: Do men who receive a false-positive prostate specific antigen (PSA) test result worry more about prostate cancer than men who receive a negative result?
  • Study Design: Cohort (prospective)
  • Setting: Outpatient (primary care)
  • Synopsis: The investigators identified 167 men from a group of consecutive men who had a negative biopsy following a suspicious PSA test. In other words, these men had a false-positive PSA result. For comparison, they also identified 233 men who had a normal PSA result. The men were mailed a brief questionnaire approximately 6 weeks after their biopsy or normal PSA test result.


 

Bottom Line

False-positive results of screening tests are not benign; they have a psychological cost. Men who received false-positive PSA test results reported having thought and worried more about prostate cancer despite receiving a negative follow-up (prostate biopsy) result. They also think that the false-positive result makes them more likely to develop prostate cancer. Screening can be bad for our patients’ mental health. (Level of evidence [LOE]=1b)

Recommended Reading

Robotic Prostatectomy Seen Better Than Standard
MDedge Family Medicine
Web Site Helps Compare Drugs
MDedge Family Medicine
Clomipramine May Aid Premature Ejaculation
MDedge Family Medicine
Androgen Deficit Linked To QT Prolongation in Men
MDedge Family Medicine
Premature Ejaculation : Clinical Guidelines for Family Physicians
MDedge Family Medicine
Pearly penile lesions
MDedge Family Medicine
Painful genital ulcers
MDedge Family Medicine
Should we screen adults for asymptomatic microhematuria?
MDedge Family Medicine
Does neonatal circumcision decrease morbidity?
MDedge Family Medicine
Four-year prostate cancer screening interval is effective
MDedge Family Medicine