An Integrated Screening Reminder for Increasing Prostate Cancer Screening Rates in Men who are at High or Average Risk for Prostate Cancer
This clinical trial tests whether integrating annual prostate specific antigen (PSA) screening reminders into electronic health records increases the rate at which eligible patients undergo PSA screening. PSA screening is a tool that can be used to detect prostate cancer earlier, with the goal of reducing disease-related death. However, PSA screening may lead to over-diagnosis of clinically insignificant prostate cancers as well as over-treatment that exposes patients to unnecessary surgery, radiation, or hormonal therapy. Risk-adapted screening strategies and individualized decision-making about screening may reduce over-diagnosis and over-treatment. The integrated PSA screening reminder tested in this study encourages primary care physicians to engage in shared decision-making about PSA testing with patients who are at average or high risk of developing prostate cancer. Annual, rather than biennial, PSA screening reminders may reduce late-stage diagnoses without increasing over-diagnosis in men who are at high or average risk for prostate cancer.