Assessing Racial Variations in PSA Testing

Since 2012, there has been a steeper decline in prostate-specific antigen (PSA) testing among Black men compared with white counterparts, according to a study published in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute.

In this study, researchers assessed men aged 40 to 74 years who self-reported receiving a routine PSA test in the past year. They estimated the odds ratios of undergoing screening by race/ethnicity while adjusting for healthcare factors. The researchers noted that prostate cancer incidence rates and rate ratios (IRRs) by race/ethnicity were estimated using Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results registry data, gleaned from 2004 to 2017.

According to the results, in 2012, PSA testing frequencies were 32.3% (95% confidence interval [CI], 31.7-32.8) among non-Hispanic white (NHW), 30.3% (95% CI, 28.3-32.3) among non-Hispanic Black (NHB), 21.8% (95% CI, 19.9-23.7) among Hispanics, and 17.7% (95% CI, 14.1-21.3) among Asian/Pacific Islander men. The results showed that the absolute screening rate dropped by 9.5% from 2012 to 2018, with a larger decline observed among Black men (11.6%) juxtaposed to white men (9.3%).

“The frequency of prostate cancer screening varies by race/ethnicity, and there was a modestly steeper decline in PSA testing among younger NHB men relative to NHW men since 2012. The NHB: NHW IRR for localized prostate cancer modestly increased following 2012,” the researchers concluded.