PROSTATE SPECIFIC ANTIGEN AS A SCREENING TOOL IN SOUTH EAST NIGERIA: AN ASSESSMENT OF COMPLIANCE LEVEL AMONG HEALTH PROFESSIONALS.
Abstract
Introduction: Prostate cancer is the leading cancer in older men and early detection has been advocated as this affords patients a potential cure by radical prostatectomy. Prostate specific antigen (PSA) is widely used as a screening tool to categorize patients who may be at risk of prostate cancer and it is considered as the most promising tumor markers available. However, the utility of PSA is not limited to prostate cancer detection; it can also be applied to benign conditions of the prostate.
Objective: To assess the compliance rate of male doctors≥ 40 years toward prostate cancer screening
Method: Questionnaires were distributed to eighty (80) male medical doctors in Aba, Abia State, Nigeria using a convenient sampling method. The data were analyzed for demography, knowledge and attitude toward PSA screening using Pearson chi-square. A PSA knowledge score was generated using three different parameters gotten from the questionnaire and subjects were classified into very good, good and poor based on their responses.
Results: Most (77.4%) of the respondents were middle aged men with a mean age of 54.17+_8.6 years. Majority (77.8%) of the respondents had a very good knowledge (n=48) of the utility of PSA as a screening tool for early diagnosis of prostate disease. However, the respondents attitude and practice toward PSA screening were poor in that majority (77.1%) has never had a previous PSA done. This is significant (p<0.001)
Conclusion: There is a poor attitude and practice toward PSA screening among the knowledgeable.
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References
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