Dr. Quoc Trinh is a urologist at the Dana-Farber Brigham Cancer Center Prostate Cancer Program, PCF Young Investigator, and researcher on health equity in prostate cancer. In this video, he discusses his research showing that rates of PSA screening after the pandemic are not recovering as quickly among Black vs White men.
What we know:
- Black men are more likely to be diagnosed with prostate cancer and are 2x more likely to die of the disease than White men. Early detection through PSA screening is paramount.
- Prior to the pandemic, Black men were actually more likely to get PSA screening (55%) than White men (45%).
- During the pandemic, disparities worsened for marginalized populations across many health measures.
What Dr. Trinh’s team found:
- Based on national survey data, PSA screening rates in both groups declined in 2020 and showed an increasing trend by 2022.
- However, the recovery was slower for Black men. The PSA screening rate increased significantly for White men between 2020 and 2022, but not for Black men.
- While this study does not define the reasons, Dr. Trinh speculates that this may be related to access to care for Black men and the resources that hospitals and clinics have available.
What this means for the public:
- If you are at risk for prostate cancer, whether you are Black, have a strong family history, or both, it’s important to advocate for yourself.
- Proactively ask your doctor about PSA screening and whether you should be having this test.
- Health systems can increase outreach to communities of color with education about PSA screening, with the goal to regain (and surpass) the progress made prior to the pandemic.