Correlation of prostatic specific antigen (PSA) and digital rectal examination (DRE) with histopathology results

ABSTRACT

Since prostate specific antigen (PSA) immunoassay has been made locally available, it has been used to detect and follow-up with prostate cancer. Although still controversial, its usefulness as a screening procedure has been extensively studied abroad. The records of 95 patients referred to our institution for prostatic evaluation and management were reviewed. The serum PSA levels and digital rectal examinations (DRE) findings were correlated with the histopathologic results. Using 10 ng/ml serum as the cut-off for abnormal PSA levels, a sensitivity rate of 93.6%, specificity of 52.7%, positive predictive value of 61.3% and an overall accuracy of 70.0% were observed.