DRE for prostate cancer at the time of colonoscopy
February 21st, 2009 Posted in prostate cancer diagnosisUrologists suspect that most men who are having colonoscopies are already highly likely to have had PSA tests and DREs, and doubts that DRE at the time of cystoscopy would actually offer any significant benefit.
Therefore they have proposed that colonoscopy presents an ideal opportunity for physicians to use a digital rectal examination (DRE) to also assess the patient for prostate cancer. They recommend that physicians performing colonoscopies in men of 50 to 70 years of age should pay special attention to the prostate while performing a DRE prior to colonoscopy. They suggest that such examinations may help maximize resources for cancer screening and could potentially increase the detection rate of clinically palpable prostate cancer.