Screening in general practice

Screening for prostate cancer in a general practice setting seems to be technically feasible and generally acceptable. In our study, 14 cancers were diagnosed among the 568 men screened, giving an overall detection rate of 2%; five of these were either locally advanced or associated with metastatic disease. Although these results may reflect our somewhat conservative biopsy rate, there is a considerable false positive rate in the PSA range of 4-10 ng/ml, particularly among men with clinical evidence of benign prostatic hyperplasia. A large scale prospective controlled study will be necessary to establish the true benefit of screening.