When To Start Prostate Exams

At What Age Should You Get Screened For Prostate Cancer

The following prostate cancer screening guidelines apply to men expected to live at least ten years.

Men ages 45 to 49 should have a baseline PSA test.

• If the PSA level is 3 ng / mL or higher, men should talk with their doctor about having a biopsy of the prostate.
• If the PSA level is between 1 and 3 ng / mL, men should see their doctor for another PSA test every two to four years.
• If the PSA level is less than 1 ng / mL, men should see their doctor for another PSA test between the ages of 51 and 55.

Men ages 50 to 59 should have their PSA level checked.

• If the PSA level is 3 ng / mL or higher, men should talk with their doctor about having a biopsy of the prostate.
• If the PSA level is between 1 and 3 ng / mL, men should see their doctor for another PSA test every two to four years.
• If the PSA level is less than 1 ng / mL, men should see their doctor for another PSA test at age 60.

Men ages 60 to 70 should have their PSA level checked.

• If the PSA level is 3 ng / mL or higher, men should talk with their doctor about having a biopsy of the prostate.
• If the PSA level is between 1 and 3 ng / mL, men should see their doctor for another PSA test every two to four years.
• If the PSA level is less than 1 ng / mL, no further screening is recommended.

Men ages 71 to 75 should talk with their doctor about whether to have a PSA test. This decision should be based on past PSA levels and the health of the man.

Patient Population Under Consideration

This recommendation applies to adult men in the general US population without symptoms or a previous diagnosis of prostate cancer. It also applies to men at increased risk of death from prostate cancer because of race/ethnicity or family history of prostate cancer. The sections below provide more information on how this recommendation applies to African American men and men with a family history of prostate cancer.

Editorial Sources And Fact

• Can prostate cancer be found early? American Cancer Society.
• What’s new in prostate cancer screening and prevention? Cleveland Clinic Journal of Medicine, August 2009 vol. 76 8 439-445.
• Interview with Dan Zenka.

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When Is It Time To Stop Being Checked For Prostate Cancer

The answer depends on your current health and your level of concern about cancer.

Routine PSA testing to check for prostate cancer is no longer recommended for most men. But despite what the experts suggest, many men continue to opt for annual PSA tests. This includes a surprisingly large number of men in their 70s. In a recent study in the journal Cancer, more than half of a group of men 75 and older had PSA tests and biopsies.

These men have placed their hope in the value of early diagnosis and treatment, yet stand to gain less from PSA testing than younger men. Across all ages, routine PSA screening leads to life-saving treatment for cancer in about one in every 1,000 men screened.

When To Get A Prostate Exam

Prostate screening is essential for most aging males.

For many years, all patients were recommended to get a prostate exam after a certain age.

Right now, the recommendations by the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force are slightly different. Prostate cancer screening should start after 55 years, but not all patients should get screened .

If you dont have risk factors or symptoms, your age is not enough reason to screen.

Still, you can do it if youre worried about your prostate.

Also, keep in mind that some average risk factors could be unknown to you. Thus, the best way to know if you need a prostate exam or not is by asking your urologist.

Men should decide for themselves if they prefer to perform an exam.

Still, health authorities recommend that males with a healthy prostate after 70 years do not perform additional exams .

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Another Option: Digital Rectal Exams

Most prostate biopsies are driven by PSA results. Urologists also use the digital rectal exam, or DRE.

“The American Urological Association hasn’t recommended rectal exams because there has yet to be a randomized trial in which some men get the rectal exam and some don’t. Based on who lives and dies, this would show if rectal exams have value,” says Dr. Freedland. “Many people, myself included, think they do have value. It’s part of the evaluation that we use even if it’s not officially in our guidelines.”

The DRE may cause momentary discomfort, but it can also detect prostate cancer for those patients with normal PSA levels. “We use the exam because we think it should work and be helpful, even if it hasn’t been studied,” Dr. Freedland adds. “Most people are screened with PSA and DRE.”

Prostate Exams: Do You Really Need One

Prostate cancer, although the second most common cancer in men in the United States, is extremely treatable when it is detected in its early stages.

Recently, there has been debates in the medical community about whether or not the benefits of a prostate exam outweigh the risks. We asked Jeffery Spencer, MD, a Urologist at Finger Lakes Urology Institute for his expert opinion on prostate exams and prostate cancer screenings.

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How Do You Achieve A Prostate Orgasm

As with any new sexual activity, learning how to have a prostate orgasm takes preparation and practice. Here are some expert-approved tips, techniques, and other important things to know.

Learn where your prostate is.

If youre new to anal play, the first step is finding your prostate. The walnut-sized gland is located underneath the bladder and in front of the rectum, and you can stimulate it by putting fingers or toys about three inches into your butt.

Try it on your own first.

Kenneth Play, sex educator and creator of the Sex Hacker Pro Series, suggests experimenting with yourself before trying with your partner. I recommend masturbation rather than partner play to start this exploration because you have a direct feedback loop,” he says. “Without having to instruct someone else or worry about being comfortable, things are much simpler and more effective.”

Know that there are two ways to achieve a prostate orgasm: through internal and external stimulation.

Now, we know you might be scratching your head in confusion, wondering how there can be an external prostate orgasm when the prostate is located inside your anus. But heres a quick bio lesson: an external prostate orgasm is when you stimulate your prostate externally, by applying pressure between your anus and your testicles, Saynt explains . No insertion required.

Internal orgasms, on the other hand, involve massaging your prostate .

Massage your perineum.

If you’re going up the butt, clean out beforehand.

How To Check Your Prostate

This article was co-authored by Robert Dhir, MD. Dr. Robert Dhir is a board certified Urologist, Urological Surgeon, and the Founder of HTX Urology in Houston, Texas. With over 10 years of experience, Dr. Dhirs expertise includes minimally-invasive treatments for enlarged prostate , kidney stone disease, surgical management of urological cancers, and mens health . His practice has been named a Center of Excellence for the UroLift procedure, and is a pioneer in non-surgical procedures for ED using his patented Wave Therapy. He earned his undergraduate and medical degrees from Georgetown University and was awarded honors in pre-medical studies, urology, orthopedics, and ophthalmology. Dr. Dhir served as chief resident during his urological surgical residency at University of Texas at Houston / MD Anderson Cancer Center in addition to completing his internship in general surgery. Dr. Dhir was voted Top Doctor in Urology for 2018 to 2019, one of the top three Best Rated Urologists in 2019 & 2020 for Houston Texas, and Texas Monthly has named him to the 2019 & 2020 Texas Super Doctors Rising Stars list.wikiHow marks an article as reader-approved once it receives enough positive feedback. This article has 11 testimonials from our readers, earning it our reader-approved status. This article has been viewed 1,025,150 times.

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What Is A Prostate Exam

A prostate exam is a screening to determine if there are any prostate issues including prostate cancer. The prostate gland is a male reproductive organ that produces semen the fluid that carries the sperm when a man ejaculates.

What are the types of screenings for prostate cancer?

There are two screening tests for prostate cancer including:

PSA testTypically, under 4 nanograms per milliliter of blood is considered normal. Using the PSA test results alone is not a good indicator of whether a man has prostate cancer because all men are different. A man with a PSA above 4 could be completely healthy, whereas a man with a PSA under 4 could have cancer.

Digital rectal examA digital rectal exam is a manual test where the doctor feels the prostate from inside the rectum.

What can you expect during prostate exam?

During a PSA test, your doctor will take a blood sample and send to a laboratory for analysis. Results can be ready as quickly as 24 hours or take as long as a week after blood is taken.

During a digital rectal exam, your doctor will insert a lubricated finger into the rectum and he or she will feel the prostate to check for any abnormalities. Although the procedure will likely be uncomfortable, it should not cause severe pain or damage any internal structures.

If your doctor finds any abnormalities, he or she will discuss further testing such as a prostate biopsy. A prostate biopsy can determine if you have prostate cancer.

How often should you have a prostate exam?

Research Needs And Gaps

There are many areas in need of research to improve screening for and treatment of prostate cancer, including

• Comparing different screening strategies, including different screening intervals, to fully understand the effects on benefits and harms
• Developing, validating, and providing longer-term follow-up of screening and diagnostic techniques, including risk stratification tools, use of baseline PSA level as a risk factor, and use of nonâPSA-based adjunctive tests that can distinguish nonprogressive and slowly progressive cancer from cancer that is likely to become symptomatic and affect quality or length of life, to reduce overdiagnosis and overtreatment
• Screening for and treatment of prostate cancer in African American men, including understanding the potential benefits and harms of different starting ages and screening intervals and the use of active surveillance given the large disparities in prostate cancer mortality in African American men, this should be a national priority
• How to better inform men with a family history of prostate cancer about the benefits and harms of PSA-based screening for prostate cancer, including the potential differences in outcomes between men with relatives who died of prostate cancer and men with relatives diagnosed with prostate cancer who died of other causes
• How to refine active prostate cancer treatments to minimize harms

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Is Going To The Bathroom Frequently A Sign Of Prostate Cancer

Thats one of the challenging things having urinary symptoms is very rarelyalmost nevera sign of prostate cancer. Having urinary symptoms means you should probably be evaluated for an enlarged prostate, also known as benign prostatic hyperplasia . We can treat your urinary symptoms and help you pee better.

If urinary symptoms bring men to the doctor, we can discuss screening for prostate cancer. Thats important because not all men will go to a doctor until theres something wrong with them. And prostate cancer screening really is the only way to detect prostate cancer, because its almost always asymptomatic.

How Often Should Men Have A Prostate Screening

A prostate screening is extremely important to have regularly. Because, without them, a mans health is at a high risk of developing prostate cancer. Knowing how often prostate screenings should be had can be helpful to those men who are not sure.

A mans health is just as important to maintain as a womans. But most people are under the assumption that womens health needs more attention. However, that is not true. Men are at risk of developing prostate cancer, and it can become very problematic if not addressed.

Keep reading to find out how often a man should have a prostate screening.

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Prostate Exam Every 4 Years

The current guidelines of the American Cancer Society recommend that men over age 50 should be offered a prostate exam every year

The Story: A new European study has shown that a thorough screening for prostate cancer every 4 years is adequate. The screening comprises a PSA blood test, a digital rectal exam, and a transrectal ultrasound. Very few, if any, aggressive prostate cancers escape screening.

It looks as if the American Cancer Society guidelines for prostate cancer screening may be changing. Transurethral ultrasound is a procedure used to examine the prostate. An instrument is inserted into the rectum, and sound waves bounce off the prostate. These soundwaves create echoes, which a computer uses to create a picture called a sonogramof the prostate.

Prostate Cancer Screening Interval of 4 Years Misses Few Cancers, StudyShows

Linda Wang, AssistantNews Editor, Katherine Arnold, News Editor, Journal of the National CancerInstitute

A 4-year screening interval was adequate to detect most cancers ina large European randomized trial of prostate cancer screening, accordingto a study in the October 1 issue of the Journal of the NationalCancer Institute.

In the study, men were divided into two groups: an intervention group that received two scheduled screens 4 years apart, and a control group that did not receive scheduled screening. The researchers checked the Dutch national cancer registry annually for cases ofprostate cancer among the study participants.

A Prostate Exam Is Five Minutes Of Your Day

A prostate exam takes no longer than five seconds of your day. A doctor will ask you to bend at the waist or lay on your side. He or she will gently place a gloved finger inside your rectum and feel your prostate.

After a few moments, it will be done and your doctor will be able to tell you if your prostate is normal-sized or enlarged. Even the busiest person in the world can spare five seconds to get their health in check.

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When To Startand Stopscreening

The doctors and researchers who recommend screening argue that cases of prostate cancer found very early can be cured more quickly, with less chance of relapse or spread. Those who recommend against routine screening point to the slow-moving nature of prostate cancer and the side effects of surgical and medical treatment, which can be considerable.

The introduction of PSA screening in the US led to an initial increase in the number of prostate cancer cases diagnosed each year, even though many of these new cases were non-aggressive or low-risk prostate cancer. The issue was not that screening was harmful, it was that many of these low-risk cancers did not necessarily need immediate treatment. It seems strange to say that a patient might be better off leaving cancer untreated, but in some cases, it can be true. For a few years, the United States Preventative Services Task Force recommended against PSA screening. We are now seeing more cases of advanced prostate cancer diagnosed in recent years. This may be a long-tail effect of that USPSTF recommendation. It has now been changed to note that for men aged 55 to 69 years, the decision to undergo PSA screening is an individual one and should be discussed with your doctor. USPSTF continues to recommend against screening for men aged 70 and over.

Who Should Get Screened For Prostate Cancer

Prostate cancer typically starts in men around 55 to 70 years old. For men who are not at a higher risk of developing the disease should begin a conversation with their doctor about getting screened in their fifties and repeat the screening about every two years.

Men who are at higher risk for developing prostate cancer should begin screenings at age 40. Those at higher risk for prostate cancer include:

• Black or African-American men
• Men with a family history of prostate cancer
• Men who have been diagnosed with prostate cancer before
• Men who have a family history of colon, breast, ovarian, or pancreatic cancer

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Our Staff Offers A Variety Of Services Including In

American Cancer Society Recommendations for Prostate Cancer Early Detection. American Cancer Society.

The Prostate Exam: What You Should Know. Healthline.com.

Digital Rectal Exam for Prostate Problems. WebMD.

The Live Better Team

Reach Out To Us Today

Prostate screenings are crucial to have so that men can catch any signs of prostate cancer early on. Once a man reaches the ages of 40 and above, it is best that he begins to consult with a doctor about this test.

If you have questions about getting a prostate screening and the importance of them, then reach out to our office so that we can help you further. Give us a call or stop by our office today and wed be happy to assist you in any way that we can.

Request an appointment here: or call Center for Adult Medicine and Preventive Care at for an appointment in our Passaic office.

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