Call to Action by the American Urological Association

On October 6, the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF), the independent group tasked with conducting scientific evidence reviews of a broad range of clinical preventive health care services and making recommendations to primary care clinicians and health systems, issued draft recommendations that downgraded the prostate-specific antigen (PSA) test to a “D” status. Since these recommendations were announced, the AUA has been working diligently to spread the word about the values of prostate cancer testing and our disagreement with the USPSTF position. On November 8, the AUA issued its formal comments to the Task Force. Click here to view the letter.
We’d like to thank the AUA members across the country who have taken the time to send opinions and comments to their local media outlets, members of Congress and the USPSTF. As the comment period closes for these Draft Recommendations, the challenge now shifts to the Task Force as it moves to finalize its guidance.
But the fight is far from over. As we wait for the final recommendations from the Task Force, there are still actions that can be taken. We’d like to urge you to continue sharing with lawmakers and members of your community the value of prostate cancer testing. We believe that men who are in good health and have more than a 10-15 year life expectancy should have the choice to be tested for prostate cancer and not be discouraged from doing so.
It is our hope that the hard work of the urology community will result in balanced recommendations from the USPSTF that help primary care professionals counsel patients about prostate cancer risk and help us move forward, not backward, in our fight against prostate cancer.
Full coverage of the AUA’s outreach regarding the USPSTF Recommendations about Prostate Cancer Testing can be viewed online at www.AUAnet.org/uspstf.

Tags: AUA, prostate, PSA screening recommendation, urology, USPSTF | Category: Urology Austin |