Dr. Oliver Sartor Discusses PSA Screening

Oliver Sartor, MD, medical director, Tulane Cancer Center, explains that he has debated both the pros and cons of prostate-specific antigen (PSA) screening for men with prostate cancer and feels he is able to provide an unbiased opinion on its efficacy.

There is no question that PSA screening detects many cancers that do not need to be treated, Sartor believes. To him, the larger question is whether there is enough knowledge to determine which patients should be treated and which should not.

The root of the PSA question revolves around the use of the score to wisely determine treatment. Sartor notes that PSA results effectively aid the decision process, not perfectly, but reasonably.