PSA

PSA	email us info@prostatehealthpartnership.co.uk

Your doctor takes a sample of your blood to check for 'PSA' (prostate specific antigen). PSA is a protein produced by both normal and cancerous prostate cells. A high level of PSA can be a sign of cancer but your PSA level can also be raised in prostate conditions that are not cancer (are benign) or if you have an infection.

There is no one PSA reading that is considered 'normal'. The reading will vary from man to man and the normal level increases with age. But a value around 4 or less is considered to be in the normal range.

A reading higher than 4, but less than 10 is usually due to a benign enlarged prostate. A reading higher than 10 may also just be benign prostate disease, but the higher the level of PSA, the more likely it is to be cancer. Occasionally a cancer may be diagnosed in a man with a PSA reading of less than 4. But generally speaking the higher the reading, the more likely it is to be cancer. Some men have PSA levels in the hundreds (or even thousands) when they are diagnosed. The higher the level of PSA at diagnosis, the more likely the cancer is to spread quickly.