The goal of a prostatectomy is to remove all the cancer, or as much of it as possible. If your cancer hasn’t spread, it might cure you. But no surgery is perfect. It is possible for prostate cancer to return after a prostatectomy. Although surgeons remove the prostate gland during a prostatectomy, some cancer cells can travel into the surrounding tissue. If these cancer cells multiply, they can cause prostate cancer to return. PSA or prostate-specific antigen is a protein produced by both normal and cancerous cells in the prostate. After a prostatectomy, PSA levels in your blood should fall to undetectable levels within six to eight weeks.
Why is PSA testing required after surgery?
A regular PSA test after a prostatectomy is a way for your doctor to keep track of your treatment. It can help your doctor see how well your surgery worked, and if your cancer has come back. While PSA is not always reliable when it comes to general cancer screening, it is an effective indicator of cancer recurrence. A high or rising PSA level could mean cancer cells are still circulating in your body. If you have had a prostatectomy, or your prostate gland surgically removed due to prostate cancer, prostate-specific antigen (PSA) testing is still important.
How to Interpret PSA Test Results?
PSA tests can be difficult to interpret. Tests can also vary from laboratory to laboratory. To ensure accurate comparison, it’s important to use the same lab each time you are tested. A more accurate way to find out if you have cancer is to test how quickly PSA levels rise. If your PSA level is low and not rising after repeated tests, it is probably not a cancer recurrence. That is because other non cancerous residual prostate cells in your body can produce small amounts of PSA. If the result is greater than or equal to 0.2 ng/mL and it’s risen on two separate tests taken at least two weeks apart, it is called a biochemical relapse. You still have PSA in your bloodstream. There is a chance that cancer has recurred. A PSA level higher than that may indicate a locally advanced tumor.
High PSA Levels and Treatment:
You might not need treatment right away. If you have had multiple PSA tests and it appears that your PSA level is rising, a number of other factors determine the next steps. These factors include:
- age and life expectancy
- general health
- cancer grade and aggressiveness
- if cancer has spread and where
- previous treatments
In some cases, high PSA levels in the blood are not due to cancer cells. Some factors that can affect PSA levels include old age, medication and ethnicity. A doctor will take these factors and the person’s medical history into account when looking at test results. This can help them decide if PSA levels are high enough to cause concern.
Conclusion:
It is important to get the PSA test every few months after your operation. Getting tested for cancer many times can cause a lot of anxiety and unclear results can cause you to worry. A little knowledge can help calm your fears. Before you have this test, find out what to expect. Ask Dr. Razdan what your results might mean and what will happen if your PSA level is higher than it should be. Learning that your PSA level is higher than it should be can be very stressful. You may need more treatment, or you might be able to wait and have regular PSA tests to watch your cancer.