Early detection of prostate cancer in German urological practice by digital rectal examination and prostate-specific antigen

For the early detection of prostate cancer, a patient should undergo digital rectal examination (DRE) and PSA investigation. Followup of increased PSA levels detects nearly 80% of cancers. Positive predictive value of suspicious DRE and PSA is about 50%. Whereas in the first evaluation of this case-finding trial about 70% of the patients had organ-confined cancers, nearly all of the detected cancers in the follow-up investigation were organ confined. The increased number of organ-confined cancers detected in early periodical examinations can lead to a reduction of mortality and morbidity from prostate cancer.