title: [Free/total PSA ratio in clinical and ambulatory application. Are different cutoffs justified?].
abstract: Especially in the setting of total prostate-specific antigen (PSA) in the intermediate range of 4-10 ng/ml and a negative digital rectal examination, the use of the free/total (F/T) PSA ratio has proved to be an effective tool in prostate cancer screening. Whole blood should be analyzed as soon as possible after venipuncture to ensure optimal effectiveness of the F/T PSA ratio. If an immediate serum analysis is not possible, the serum should be frozen or stored at a maximum of 4 degrees C for a short period. Otherwise, when applying the F/T PSA cutoffs as recommended in the literature to a cohort with delayed analysis, a lack of specificity arises, and the initial advantage of reducing biopsies is minimized. To prevent loss of quality in a setting with delayed F/T PSA measurement, we recommend that physicians compare their own data critically with presented results and eventually adapt the cutoffs individually.
authors.affiliation: Duisburger Fachärztegemeinschaft Urologie, Duisburgerstrasse 227, 47166, Duisburg, Germany. swoboda@urologo.de
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Swoboda
authors.forename: H-J
authors.initials: HJ
authors.lastname: Luboldt
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Rübben
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Börgermann
mesh_terms: D000553:Ambulatory Care / Q000379:methods*; D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor / Q000097:blood*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D017430:Prostate-Specific Antigen / Q000097:blood*; D011471:Prostatic Neoplasms / Q000097:blood* / Q000175:diagnosis*; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity
chemical_list: D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor; D017430:Prostate-Specific Antigen
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