PSA levels accurately predict prostate cancer risk in African-American men

PSA levels appear to be more predictive of three year prostate cancer risk in African-American men compared with Caucasian men with a family history of prostate cancer, according to a paper published in Cancer Prevention Research, a journal of the American Association for Cancer Research.

The researchers subsequently analyzed men with a PSA between 1.5 to 4 ng/mL, and who had at least one follow-up visit. They found that among men with a family history of prostate cancer, PSA levels had the same predictive value whether the men were Caucasian or African-American.

These findings are unique in that typically men are not recommended for a prostate biopsy until their PSA levels rise above 4 ng/mL. Larger studies with longer follow-up are needed to confirm these findings.