The Prostate Profile includes a Prostate Specific Antigen test or PSA test, which is currently the most important screening test for prostate cancer and prostate disorders. Annual testing is recommended for all men over 40 years old.

Prostate Specific Antigen or PSA is a protein made by the prostate which naturally leaks into the bloodstream. There are two types of PSA. 'Total PSA' and 'Free PSA'

Calculating the ratio of 'Free PSA' to 'Total PSA' can be a significant factor when looking for early signs of prostate disease and can assist in differentiating between benign prostatic hypertrophy (BPH or enlarged prostate) and prostate cancer. By using the ratio of 'Free PSA' to 'Total PSA' it is possible to identify men at risk even when total PSA values are within normal limits.

To read more about Prostate Cancer and Prostate Disorders click here to view our Prostate Cancer fact sheet.

Prostate Cancer tests and a PSA test is inluded in the Well Man Check and the Well Man Check Plus.

Prostate cancer ordinarily grows slowly and does not, by itself, cause death - if it stays in the prostate. Unfortunately, once the cells that make up prostate cancer have grown inside the prostate for a long enough time to reach a critical mass in size and number of cells, the cancer can spread outside of the prostate gland to other parts of the body. Like boiling water in a pot bubbling over, prostate cancer "pours" out of the prostate gland into the surrounding tissue.

Once free of the prostate, the cancer cells can find new homes in the bones, liver, brain, lungs, spinal cord, or elsewhere. When that happens, the cancer that was simply annoying becomes deadly. And it often becomes deadly long before anyone knows it exists. 

Did You Know that Prostate Cancer:

• is the single most common form of solid tumour in humans
• is newly diagnosed every 2.6 minutes
• is present in more than 9 million men
• kills one man every 13 minutes
• afflicts one in six men in their lifetime
• is high risk for black men – they have incidence and mortality rates as much as 50% higher than other racial or ethnic groups
• strikes as many men (and causes almost as many deaths annually) as breast cancer does in women, but lacks the national awareness and research funding breast cancer currently receives
• is nearly 100 percent survivable if detected early
• annual testing (PSA) is recommended for all men 40+

Prostate cancer is now the most common cancer in males in the UK, with nearly 20,000 men being diagnosed with the disease.