PSA screening test is used to diagnose the prostate cancer in US.
On the other hand, Japan doesn't recognize the PSA test as the effective test because of a poor evidence.
I wrote this topic in the previous diary.
Today, U.S. Preventive Services Task Force rethink the effectiveness of this test.
Previously, this test is thought to be useful over 75-years-old male, but this statement shows that this would be useful for almost all male.
These points are
http://general-medicine.jwatch.org/cgi/content/full/2011/1027/1
- The magnitude of harms from screening (e.g., falsely high PSA levels, psychological effects, unnecessary biopsies, overdiagnosis of indolent tumors) is "at least small."
- The magnitude of treatment-associated harms (i.e., adverse effects of surgery, radiation, and hormonal therapy) is "at least moderate" ― particularly because of overtreatment among men with low-grade disease.
- The 10-year mortality benefit of PSA-based prostate cancer screening is "small to none."
- The overall balance of benefits and harms results in "moderate certainty that PSA-based screening ... has no net benefit."
I think that the MHLW (Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare), that is Japanese FDA, should discuss more. The time has come, haven't it?
