Changes in the outcome of prostate biopsies after preventive task force recommendation against prostate-specific antigen screening

Increasing aggressive prostate cancer

INTRODUCTION

To compare prostate biopsy (Pbx) characteristics, before and after the 2012 United States Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) prostate cancer screening guidelines in our practice.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

We completed a retrospective comparative analysis of 1703 sequential patients that had a Pbx in 2010 to 2012 (3 years) with 1006 patients biopsied in 2018, 2019 and 2021 (3 years). Data from a total of 2709 Pbx was collected on patient age, race, prostate-specific antigen (PSA), digital rectal examination (DRE) and Gleason sum score (GSS). The data was analyzed to determine whether the 2012 USPSTF screening recommendations against prostate cancer screening may have affected prostate cancer characteristics. Two study groups were defined as Group A and Group B. Group A represents Pbx prior to the 2012 USPSTF screening guidelines (2010-2012) and Group B represents Pbx in 2018-19 and 2021. The patient population consisted of 76% Black, 14% White and 11% other.

RESULTS

The number of patients that had a Pbx in Groups A vs. B: 567 patients/year vs. 335 patients/year. The annual positive Pbx rate for Group A vs. B: 134/year vs. 175/year. High grade prostate cancer (GSS 7-10) in Groups A vs. B: 51.5% vs. 59%. The proportion of patients with a PSA 10 ng/mL or greater in Groups A vs. B: 25.4% vs. 31%. The PSA 10 ng/mL and over and GSS 7-10 was higher in Group B for all age groups. In 2021, GSS 7-10 was present in 64% of 70-80 year olds. In Group B, GSS 6 decreased by 7.5% while GSS 7-10 increased by 7.5% compared with Group A.

CONCLUSIONS

Our data through the year 2021 shows that after the 2012 USPSTF recommendations against prostate cancer screening, Pbx decreased and prostate cancer diagnosis and high grade (GSS 7-10) prostate cancer increased. As our patient population consists of 76% Black patients and 33% of men age 70-80 years old, our results support annual prostate cancer screening for US men 50-80 years old and especially high-risk patients that include Black men, men with a family history of prostate cancer and healthy men age 70-80 years old. Annual DRE- and PSA- based prostate cancer screening will likely markedly decrease prostate cancer morbidity, mortality and the cost of prostate cancer management.

Impact on prostate cancer clinical presentation after non-screening policies at a tertiary-care medical center- a retrospective study

Background

In May 2012 the US Preventive Task Force issued a ‘D’ recommendation against routine PSA-based early detection of prostate cancer. This recommendation was implemented progressively in our health system. The aim of this study is to define its impact on prostate cancer staging at a tertiary care institution.

Methods

A retrospective analysis was performed from 2012 until 2015 at a single center. We analyzed the total number of biopsies performed per year and the positive biopsy rate. For those patients with positive biopsies we recorded diagnostic PSA, clinical stage, ISUP grade group, nodal involvement and metastatic status at diagnosis.

Results

A total of 1686 biopsies were analyzed. The positive biopsy rate increased from 25% in 2012 to 40% in 2015 (p < 0.05). No change in median PSA was noticed (p = 0.627). The biopsies detected higher ISUP grades (p = 0.000). In addition, newly diagnosed prostate cancer presented a higher clinical stage (p = 0.005), higher metastatic rates (p = 0.03) and a tendency to higher lymph node involvement although not statistically significant (p = 0.09).

Conclusion

After the 2012 recommendation, patients presented a higher probability of a prostate cancer diagnosis, with a more adverse ISUP group, clinical stage and metastatic disease.

These results should be taken into consideration to implement a risk adapted strategy for prostate cancer screening.

A Trend Toward Aggressive Prostate Cancer

To compare prostate biopsy (Pbx) characteristics before and after the 2012 United States Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) prostate cancer (PCa) screening guidelines, we completed a retrospective comparative analysis of 1703 sequential patients that had a Pbx in 2010 to 2012 (3 years) with 383 patients biopsied in 2018 and 310 patients biopsied in 2019. Data was collected on patient age, race, serum prostate specific antigen (PSA) level, digital rectal examination (DRE) results, total number of biopsies performed, and Gleason sum score (GSS). Data were analyzed to determine whether the 2012 USPSTF screening recommendations against PCa screening may have affected PCa characteristics. Three study groups were defined as Group A, Group B, and Group C. Group A represents Pbx prior to the 2012 USPSTF screening guidelines (2010-2012), Group B represents Pbx in 2018, and Group C represents Pbx in 2019. The patient population consisted of 73% Black men, 16% White men, and 11% men of other races. The number of patients that had a biopsy in Groups A through C, respectively, were 567 patients/year, 383 patients/year, and 310 patients/year. The annual positive Pbx rate for Group A through C was 134/year, 175/year, and 201/year, respectively. High-grade PCa (GSS 7-10) in Groups A through C was 51.5%, 60.5%, and 60.0%. The proportion of patients with a serum PSA level 10 ng/mL or greater in Groups A through C was 25.4%, 29.3%, and 33%. For patients age 70 to 80 years, there was an increasing trend for serum PSA levels 10 ng/mL and higher: 31%, 38%, and 39%, respectively. In this age group, high-grade tumors (GSS 7-10) occurred in 61%, 65%, and 68%, respectively. In 2019, Grade Group 3, 4, and 5 was present in 37.7% of 70- to 80-year-old men and 34.6% of Black men. More than 50% positive biopsy cores were present in 46.3% of 70- to 80-year old men and 36.6% of Black men. Our data through 2019 continued to show that after the 2012 USPSTF recommendations against PCa screening, PCa screening has decreased. We found decreased Pbx, increased PCa diagnosis, and increased high-grade PCa (GSS 7-10). As our patient population consisted of 73% Black patients and 33% of men age 70 to 80 years, our results support aggressive PCa screening for high-risk patients, which include Black men, men with a family history of PCa, and healthy men age 70 to 80 years.

Pathological upgrading in prostate cancer treated with surgery in the United Kingdom: trends and risk factors from the British Association of Urological Surgeons Radical Prostatectomy Registry

BACKGROUND

Accurate grading at the time of diagnosis if fundamental to risk stratification and treatment decision making in patients with prostate cancer. Whilst previous studies have demonstrated significant pathological upgrading and downgrading following radical prostatectomy (RP), these were based on historical cohorts and do not reflect contemporary patient selection and management practices. The aim of this national, multicentre observational study was to characterise contemporary rates and risk factors for pathological upgrading after RP in the United Kingdom (UK).

METHODS

All RP entries on the British Association of Urological Surgeons (BAUS) Radical Prostatectomy Registry database of prospectively entered cases undertaken between January 2011 and December 2016 were extracted. Those patients with full preoperative PSA, clinical stage, needle biopsy and subsequent RP pathological grade information were included. Upgrade was defined as any increase in Gleason grade from initial needle biopsy to pathological assessment of the entire surgical specimen. Statistical analysis and multivariate logistic regression were undertaken using R version 3.5 (R Foundation for Statistical Computing, Vienna, Austria).

RESULTS

A total of 17,598 patients met full inclusion criteria. Absolute concordance between initial biopsy and pathological grade was 58.9% (n = 10,364), whilst upgrade and downgrade rates were 25.5% (n = 4489) and 15.6% (n = 2745) respectively. Upgrade rate was highest in those with D'Amico low risk compared with intermediate and high-risk disease (55.7% versus 19.1 and 24.3% respectively, P < 0.001). Although rates varied between year of surgery and geographical regions, these differences were not significant after adjusting for other preoperative diagnostic variables using multivariate logistic regression.

CONCLUSIONS

Pathological upgrading after RP in the UK is lower than expected when compared with other large contemporary series, despite operating on a generally higher risk patient cohort. As new diagnostic techniques that may reduce rates of pathological upgrading become more widely utilised, this study provides an important benchmark against which to measure future performance.

Prostate Biopsy Features: A Comparison Between the Pre- and Post-2012 United States Preventive Services Task Force Prostate Cancer Screening Guidelines With Emphasis on African American and Septuagenarian Men

We compare prostate biopsy (Pbx) characteristics from 3 years prior to the 2012 United States Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) prostate cancer (PCa) screening guidelines with those of 2018, with a focus on African American (AA) men and healthy men aged 70 to 80 years. We completed a retrospective comparative analysis of 1703 sequential patients that had had a Pbx from 2010 to 2012 (3 years) with 383 patients biopsied in 2018. Data was collected on patient age, race, prostate-specific antigen (PSA), digital rectal examination (DRE), total number of biopsies performed, and Gleason sum score (GSS). The data was analyzed to determine whether the 2012 USPSTF screening recommendations affected PCa characteristics. Two study groups were defined as group A and B, Pbx prior to the 2012 USPSTF screening guidelines and that of 2018, respectively. The study population consisted of 71% high-risk AA patients. In Group A (pre-2012 USPSTF guidelines), 567 patients/year underwent a Pbx versus Group B, 383 patients/year, a 32% reduction post-USPSTF. The annual positive Pbx rate for Group A is 134/year versus Group B with 175/year, a 31% increase post-USPSTF. In Group B, there was a 94% relative increase in total positive biopsies. Group A had high-grade PCa (GSS 7-10) in 51.5% versus 60.5% in Group B, a 9% increase post-USPSTF. The proportion of patients with a PSA 10 ng/mL or higher was 25.4% in group A versus 29.3% in group B. The age group of 70 to 80 years demonstrated an increasing trend for patients with PSA 10 ng/mL and higher, 31% in Group A versus 38% in Group B; high-grade tumors (GSS 7-10) occurred in 61% in Group A versus 65% in Group B. After the 2012 USPSTF guidelines against PCa screening, our study shows decreased prostate cancer screening with decreased Pbx, increased PCa diagnosis, and increased high-grade (GSS 7-10) PCa. These trends were especially notable in the 70- to 80-year age group, which showed a larger proportion of total patients (compared with pre-2012 USPSTF guidelines), increased PCa grades, increased PSA levels, and a higher percentage of patients with greater than 50% positive cores. As our patient population consists of 71% AA patients, our results support aggressive PCa screening for high-risk patients, which includes AA men, men with a family history of PCa, and healthy men aged 70 to 80 years.