Rates Of Metastatic Prostate Cancer Are On The Rise - Are Screening Guidelines To Blame?

BOSTON (CBS) -- Some concerning news when it comes to prostate cancer -- rates of metastatic disease are on the rise. Could screening guidelines could be to blame? Dr. Mallika Marshall explains:

In 2012, the US Preventive Services Task Force recommended against routine screening for prostate cancer with PSA blood tests, concerned that widespread screening would lead to overdiagnosis and unnecessary treatment in many men.  Now after studying data on more than 800,000 patients, researchers at the University of Southern California found the rate of metastatic prostate cancer among men 45 and older rose significantly after routine screening was discouraged. In 2018, the Task Force walked back its guidance saying that decisions on whether to screen should be made on a case-by-case basis. The hope is that this personalized approach coupled with more sophisticated imaging will help reduce the rates of metastatic prostate cancer again while minimizing overdiagnosis and overtreatment.