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Prostate Cancer Awareness Day at BC Legislative Assembly
VICTORIA, May 4, 2012- On Monday, May 7, Prostate Cancer Canada (PCC) will host their first Legislative Assembly Day to promote education and awareness of prostate cancer in British Columbia.

Media Advisory - Prostate Cancer Canada celebrates local Halifax hero
HALIFAX, April 25, 2012 /CNW/ - Please join Prostate Cancer Canada and members of the Halifax business community as we celebrate a local hero who has made an extraordinary contribution in the fight against prostate cancer through courage, inspiration and dedication.

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PCC position on PSA testing

11/2/2011

The United States Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) has recently recommended against the use of prostate specific antigen (PSA) to screen for prostate cancer in asymptomatic men. In light of this development, Prostate Cancer Canada (PCC) wishes to clarify its position on PSA testing. PCC continues to support and recommend PSA testing for the early detection of prostate cancer. PCC emphasizes that, applied appropriately, PSA is a useful test. A full discussion with the patient on the pros and cons of PSA testing should continue to be an integral part of patient management.

The USPSTF based their recommendation in part on the U.S. figure that 90% of screen-detected cancers are treated, mostly with radical prostatectomy or radiotherapy. In Canada, selective treatment using active surveillance, with delayed treatment if and when necessary, has been widely adopted by physicians and accepted by patients for those with ‘low risk’ prostate cancer. Thus the problem of over-treatment has been substantially reduced. PCC believes that, in contrast, early detection of intermediate and high risk prostate cancer saves lives and is of considerable benefit to the patient.

Another USPSTF recommendation was that “community-based and employer-based screening that does not allow informed choice should be discontinued”. The Patient and Public Education Committee of PCC wishes to emphasize that such screening practices have generally not been prevalent in Canada. Many U.S. institutions also based their decisions to perform prostate biopsy on a lower cut-off PSA level (often as low as 2.0 - 2.5 ng.ml), a practice which is not widespread in Canada.

Shared decision making between patients and physicians is a fundamental concept in Canadian medical practice.

Therefore, PCC maintains that PSA, when applied appropriately, is a useful test. By facilitating early diagnosis, it reduces the risk of dying of prostate cancer, at an acceptable cost in terms of side effects. Men should be encouraged to obtain information about the risks and benefits of the PSA testing and physicians should be prepared to provide such information.

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