O'Dell K J, Volk R J, Cass A R, Spann S J
Clinical Science Center, University of Alabama School of Medicine-Huntsville Campus, 35801, USA.
J Fam Pract. 1999 Sep;48(9):682-8.
The benefits of early detection of prostate cancer are uncertain, and the American College of Physicians and the American Academy of Family Physicians recommend individual decision making in prostate cancer screening. This study reports the knowledge of male primary care patients about prostate cancer and prostate-specific antigen (PSA) testing and examines how that knowledge is related to PSA testing, preferences for testing in the future, and desire for involvement in physician-patient decision making.
The sample included 160 men aged 45 to 70 years with no history of prostate cancer who presented for care at a university-based family medicine clinic. Before scheduled office visits, patients completed a questionnaire developed for this study that included a 10-question measure of prostate cancer knowledge, the Deber-Kraestchmer Problem-Solving Decision-Making Scale, sociodemographic indicators, and questions on PSA testing.
In general, patients who were college graduates were more knowledgeable about prostate cancer and early detection than those with a high school education or less. Aside from college graduates, most patients could not identify the principle advantages and disadvantages of PSA testing. Patients indicating previous or future plans for PSA testing demonstrated greater knowledge than other patients. Desire for involvement in decision making varied by patient education but was not related to past PSA testing.
Patients lack knowledge about prostate cancer and early detection. This knowledge deficit may impede the early detection of prostate cancer and is a barrier to making an informed decision about undergoing PSA testing.
前列腺癌早期检测的益处尚不确定，美国医师学会和美国家庭医师学会建议在前列腺癌筛查中进行个体化决策。本研究报告了男性初级保健患者对前列腺癌和前列腺特异性抗原（PSA）检测的了解情况，并探讨了该知识与PSA检测、未来检测偏好以及参与医患决策的意愿之间的关系。
样本包括160名年龄在45至70岁之间、无前列腺癌病史、在一家大学附属家庭医学诊所就诊的男性。在预定的门诊就诊前，患者完成了一份为本研究编制的问卷，其中包括一个10题的前列腺癌知识量表、德伯-克雷斯奇默问题解决决策量表、社会人口学指标以及关于PSA检测的问题。
总体而言，大学毕业生比高中及以下学历的患者对前列腺癌和早期检测了解更多。除大学毕业生外，大多数患者无法识别PSA检测的主要优缺点。表示有过或未来有PSA检测计划的患者比其他患者表现出更多的知识。参与决策的意愿因患者教育程度而异，但与过去的PSA检测无关。
患者缺乏关于前列腺癌和早期检测的知识。这种知识缺陷可能会阻碍前列腺癌的早期检测，并且是做出是否接受PSA检测的明智决策的障碍。
