Men with prostate cancer often become aware of their condition too late, leaving themselves with an incurable disease.
But some University researchers hope a new test they have developed to detect prostate cancer will give men quick and accurate answers.
The prostate-specific antigen blood test, known as PSA, is a routine part of prostate examinations. The test is now more sensitive to early signs of the disease after being modified by researchers at the University's Michigan Prostate Institute.
Dr. Joseph Oesterling, director of the Michigan Prostate Institute, said the new test will help physicians detect an additional 44-percent of prostate cancer cases in their early stages.
"This new test helps significantly to find more cancers that previously would have been missed," said Oesterling, chair of the urology department. "It is a more clinically useful and reliable test."
Deanna Hairi, director of financial planning at University Hospitals, said improved testing is a primary way for hospitals to cut costs.
"It's one of the ways that hospitals look at to cut their own costs, costs to the patients, and the insurance companies they deal with," Hairi said. "I think as we develop more advanced tests for diseases, it will eliminate what we have to go through now, which is performing multiple tests."
Oesterling said the prostate-specific antigens in the blood are divided into free and complex antigens. The new PSA test, also called the percent-free test, finds the percentage of free antigens in the blood. If the percentage is too low, the patient may have prostate cancer and is advised to undergo further testing.
In addition to detecting early cancer cases, the percent-free PSA test can also determine if the disease is absent. Oesterling said that a high result on the older PSA test is not always a sign of prostate cancer and can result from a number of non-cancerous conditions.
Oesterling said he expects the percent-free PSA test to cut down on the amount of subsequent testing previously needed to confirm preliminary results.
"The new test will eliminate negative biopsies," Oesterling said. "There are a number of men with slightly elevated PSAs who don't have cancer - you don't want to biopsy these guys."
While more sensitive tests may reduce costs to the patient, they only benefit patients who seek treatment early. Oesterling emphasized the need for older men - especially those with family members who have had prostate cancer - to be tested annually.
"Prostate cancer is a very common problem, with more than 40,000 men dying each year," Oesterling said.
"The only way to prevent men from dying from the disease is to find it early - while it's still in the prostate - but the problem with finding it in the early stages is that the patient shows no symptoms at that point."