Prostate-specific antigen (PSA) is the biomarker used for post-treatment surveillance of PCa patients [ 1, 2 ]. In curative cases, PSA levels decrease gradually over a period of more than five years after radiotherapy and reach a nadir. In a subset of patients, however, PSA levels fluctuate and show a temporal increase called the PSA bounce [ 3 ].
What you should know about PSA levels after prostatectomy?
These factors include:
- age and life expectancy
- general health
- cancer grade and aggressiveness
- if cancer has spread and where
- previous treatments
What to do about a rising PSA after radiation?
What to Ask When Your PSA Is Rising After Initial Treatment
- What does it mean that my PSA level is rising again?
- What is my PSA level now, and how will we monitor changes over time?
- Can we (should we) chart the velocity or doubling time of my PSA? ...
- Am I a candidate for local “salvage” prostatectomy or radiation? ...
- Should I get a bone scan to see if the cancer has spread to my bones?
What is a normal PSA after radiation?
The lower the PSA level at five years, the more durable the probability of maintained biochemical disease-free survival. Researchers concluded that when PSA levels remain low (less than 2 ng/mL) five years after external beam radiation therapy, the great majority of patients will be biochemically disease-free at 10 years.
What PSA level indicates prostate cancer?
- About 1 death from prostate cancer would be avoided.
- 120 men would have a false-positive test result that leads to a biopsy, and some men who get a biopsy would experience at least moderately bothersome symptoms from the biopsy.
- 100 men would be diagnosed with prostate cancer. ...
How long after RP was my PSA reading?
How long does it take for prostate cancer to rise after seeding?
What is a bump in prostate cancer?
How long does it take to see if your PSA is low?
Does the CDC have a PSA bounce?
Does ejaculation affect PSA?
Is there variability in PSA levels?
See more
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What is PSA bounce after radiation?
Listen to pronunciation. (… bownts) A brief rise and then fall in the blood level of PSA (prostate-specific antigen) that occurs in some patients 1-3 years after receiving radiation treatment for prostate cancer.
How long can a PSA bounce last?
Results. Sixty-one patients (29.6%) experienced “PSA bounce”, at a median time of 16 months and lasted for 12 months.
Can PSA levels fluctuate after radiation?
After radiation therapy The remaining normal prostate cells will still make some PSA. The pattern of the drop in PSA after radiation therapy is also different from after surgery. PSA levels after radiation tend to drop slowly, and might not reach their lowest level until 2 years or more after treatment.
How common is a PSA bounce?
In one study, approximately 12% of men who underwent treatment with external beam radiation therapy were reported to have a PSA bounce about nine months after treatment, on average.
What does a jump in PSA mean?
PSA velocity is the change in PSA levels over time. A rapid rise in PSA may indicate the presence of cancer or an aggressive form of cancer. However, recent studies have cast doubt on the value of PSA velocity in predicting a finding of prostate cancer from biopsy.
What is a normal PSA level 6 months after radiation?
The median PSA 6 months after EBRT was 0.1 ng/mL (range, 0-19 ng/mL), and 310 patients (58.3%) had a 6-month PSA ≤0.1 ng/mL. Multivariable analysis (MVA) demonstrated that a 6-month post-EBRT PSA of >0.1 ng/mL was an independent predictor of worse bRFS (hazard ratio [HR] = 2.518; P<. 0001), DMFS (HR=3.743; P<.
What should PSA be 2 years after radiation?
Summary: Prostate cancer patients who have a prostate-specific antigen value of less than or equal to 1.5 at two years after external beam radiation therapy are less likely to have a cancer recurrence and cancer-related death, according to a new study.
How fast does PSA rise after radiation?
Median follow-up after the end of radiotherapy was 108 months. A PSA bounce showed to be a significant factor for biochemical control (BC) and overall survival (OS) after ten years (BC10 of 83% with bounce vs. 34% without, p < 0.01; OS10 of 82% with bounce vs. 59% without bounce, p < 0.01).
What should PSA be 3 months after radiation?
Patients were characterized by 3-month post-RT PSA values: <0.10 ng/mL, 0.10 to 0.49 ng/mL, and ≥0.50 ng/mL. The researchers found that a higher 3-month PSA level was strongly associated with biochemical progression-free survival (bPFS), prostate cancer-specific survival (PCSS), and overall survival (OS).
What is a good PSA level after radiotherapy?
Recent studies have shown that for optimal results, PSA levels should be lower than 1 ng/ml, and even lower than 0.5 ng/ml. Levels that are above 1 or 2 ng/ml 12 to 18 months following completion of radiation treatments are very worrisome, because they indicate that the cancer may not have been eradicated.
Can radiation cause PSA to rise?
Neoadjuvant hormone therapy and radiation therapy Moreover, some men who have undergone external beam radiation therapy or implantation of radioactive seeds (brachytherapy) experience a phenomenon known as PSA bounce, a temporary spike in PSA that does not necessarily indicate recurrence.
What is a normal PSA doubling time?
The PSA doubling time of our example patient would therefore be 48 months. For patients with relatively constant PSA, such as a change from 6 to 6.1 ng/ml over the course of a year, doubling time become rather unstable and such patients are normally categorized in terms of “doubling time > 10 years” or similar.
What causes PSA levels to go up after prostate removal?
It's possible that some of the cancer cells spread outside your prostate before your procedure. Or the operation might have left a few cancer cells behind. Those cells could start to grow in the future. A regular PSA test after a prostatectomy is a way for your doctor to keep tabs on your treatment.
Covid-19 Vaccine effects on PSA readings ? - Prostate cancer
I received my second shot of the Pfizer vaccine on April 6. A month prior to that my PSA was 5.9. A month after my second shot on May 10 my PSA had gone down to 5.0.
Typical PSA bounce following SBRT - HealingWell
My thoughts and prayers go out to the guys out there with far more serious PC issues than myself. However, for those more common low and intermediate risk guys I wanted to share my PSA bounce information so that they might know what to expect following RT as a mono therapy especially since SBRT is becoming a more common choice of treatment.
PSA Spike 1.77 to 6.96 in a year | Prostate Cancer - Patient
Hi All, Last year 6/2015 my PSA was 1.77. In March this year I had a Colonoscopy and doctor found that i have an enlarged prostate. This month i had PSA check and went up to 6.96. I'm wondering if the rapid rise in my PSA 1.77 to 6.96 in a year is somehow related to enlarged prostate or something else.
PSA “bounces” after first-line radiation therapy | THE "NEW ...
Perhaps the single most annoying "side effect" of radiation therapy for prostate cancer is not a side effect at all; it's the periodic fluctuations in PSA, called "bounces," that can occur for years after therapy. A new analysis from researchers at the Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center assures us that our anxiety is misplaced -- PSA…
COVID-19 vaccine... PSA levels could... - Advanced Prostate...
My PSA went down after the Pfzier vaccine but this could have been due to natural variation or other factors. It is possible that the vaccine enters normal as well as cancer cells and these cells would be destroyed by the immune system, but the local environment of prostate cancer metastases are immuno suppressive therefore unlikely.
Prostate cancer: Does PSA level affect prognosis? - Mayo Clinic
Yes. In most cases, a higher PSA level indicates a poorer prostate cancer prognosis.. PSA is a protein made by prostate tissue. Men with prostate cancer often have elevated PSA levels because the cancer cells make excessive amounts of this protein.
How long does it take for a PSA to drop after a prostatectomy?
Your PSA should fall to a very low or even undetectable level within a couple of months after radical prostatectomy. Because some PSA can remain in the blood for several weeks after surgery, even if all of the prostate cells were removed, doctors often advise waiting at least 6 to 8 weeks after surgery before checking the PSA level.
What happens if your PSA is higher than 2 ng/mL?
Some medical groups have proposed that if the PSA rises more than 2 ng/mL above the lowest level reached, further treatment should be considered, but some doctors might advise tests to look for cancer in the body even if the PSA has not yet risen this much.
What does a PSA level show?
When treatments such as hormone therapy, chemotherapy, or immunotherapy are used for more advanced prostate cancer, the PSA level can help show how well the treatment is working or when it might be time to try a different treatment.
How long does it take for prostate to drop after radiation?
PSA levels after radiation tend to drop slowly, and might not reach their lowest level until 2 years or more after treatment.
What happens to PSA after radiation?
The PSA rises slightly for a short time within the first couple of years after treatment, but then goes back down. Doctors aren’t sure why this happens, but it doesn’t seem to affect a man’s prognosis.
Why is PSA monitored?
If you choose observation or active surveillance, your PSA level will be monitored closely (most likely along with other tests) to help decide if the cancer is growing and if treatment should be considered. Your doctor will watch your PSA level and how quickly it is rising.
Why is PSA important?
The PSA level is an important tool to monitor the cancer, but not every rise in PSA means that the cancer is growing and requires treatment right away. To help limit unnecessary anxiety, be sure you understand what change in your PSA level might concern your doctor.
How long do bounces last?
Bounces are often above +1 ng/ml, may last for more than a year, and are usually noted between 1 year and 4 years after therapy. The reason that bounces occur is a bit of a mystery. There are various theories: Prostatitis — which may be pre-existing, can arise after invasive procedures (e.g., biopsy, fiducial placement, or brachytherapy), ...
Why does PSA drop so sharply?
PSA drops most sharply and consistently in more aggressive cancers because radiation kills the most rapidly dividing cells first. Whatever the reason, bounces are a good thing.
Is bouncy PSA good for prostate cancer?
Whatever the reason, bounces are a good thing. For patients that were diagnosed with low- or intermediate-risk prostate cancer, a slow, bouncy PSA decline should engender a feeling of relief rather than anxiety.
Does radiation cause PSA to bounce?
PSA “bounces” after first-line radiation therapy. Perhaps the single most annoying “side effect” of radiation therapy for prostate cancer is not a side effect at all; it’s the periodic fluctuations in PSA, called “bounces,” that can occur for years after therapy. A new analysis from researchers at the Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center assures ...
Is a biopsies invasive?
Biopsies are invasive and non-informative while the cancer is still in the “slow death” phase. There is a kind of MRI called MR spectroscopy (MRS) that may be able to non-invasive ly distinguish between bounces and PSA recurrence.
How often do doctors measure PSA?
After radiation treatment, doctors typically measure the PSA level every three months in a patient for the first year, and every six months thereafter. During the first year or two, patients normally experience a decline in their PSA blood test score.
Can a rising PSA level predict cancer?
But can a rising or falling PSA (prostate-specific antigen) level after radiation treatment predict whether the cancer will return? According to a study published in the International Journal of Radiation Oncology/Biology/Physics (March 16, 2006), the answer is yes: The longer period of PSA fall and lower PSA nadir predicts a higher chance ...
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Departments of Radiation Oncology and Urology, University of California, Los Angeles, CA, USA
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How long after RP was my PSA reading?
7 weeks after RP my first PSA reading was 13. two weeks later it was 26. Prior to surgery PSA was 48 and had been on a 8 year steady incline with a doubling time of 260 days at the time of surgery (4/17). That was a shocking increase when I was expecting a decrease to zero.
How long does it take for prostate cancer to rise after seeding?
As many as one-third of men who choose brachytherapy, or seed therapy, to treat their prostate cancer may experience this transient rise in PSA, usually about 18 to 24 months after the seeds are implanted.
What is a bump in prostate cancer?
The last thing a prostate cancer patient wants to hear after treatment is that his prostate-specific antigen (PSA) level is on the rise! However, as your doctor points out, you may be experiencing nothing more than a temporary, benign rise in PSA, a phenomenon often called a PSA bounce, spike , or bump.
How long does it take to see if your PSA is low?
But your physician probably wants to wait to see what your PSA level is in six months, especially since it’s still relatively low.
Does the CDC have a PSA bounce?
Meanwhile, scientists continue to explore treatments and to keep an eye on viral variants. Doctors aren’t sure what causes a PSA bounce, though several theories exist.
Does ejaculation affect PSA?
Studies have shown an association between recent ejaculation and higher PSA levels, for example, as well as proctitis (inflammation of the rectum) and the insertion of a catheter. Age and radiation dose may play a role as well. There can also be variability among laboratories in determining PSA levels.
Is there variability in PSA levels?
There can also be variability among laboratories in determining PSA levels. Another theory is that a patient may be experiencing a late reaction to the radiation, such as radiation prostatitis. The challenge for clinicians is to determine whether the rising PSA represents a bounce or cancer progression.
