Prostate Cancer: Screening Guidelines
Cancer Screening Guidelines
Note that when we use the terms "male" and "men" we are referring to people assigned male at birth. This section covers the following topics:
Prostate cancer screening for high-risk people
The National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN) has guidelines for screening using tests and digital rectal exam (DRE) in people age 40 and older who are at increased risk for prostate cancer.
- If you have a mutation, NCCN recommends yearly screening.
- NCCN recommends other high-risk people should consider annual screening after having a conversation with their doctor about the benefits and risks of testing. This includes people who:
- have a mutation in another gene linked to prostate cancer
- have a family history of prostate cancer
- are Black/African American
- High-risk people should consider enrolling in a screening clinical trial.
See the table below for more details.
Screening for average-risk people
There are several different guidelines for prostate cancer screening in people of average risk. All of the guidelines include having a conversaton with your doctor about your risk for prostate cancer and the benefits, risks and limitations of screening using PSE testing and DRE. The recommended frequency of screening depends on whether the PSA results are low or slightly elevated. See the table below for more details.
- NCCN recommendations begin at age 45.
- The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force () recommendations begin at age 55.
- The American Cancer Society (ACS) recommendations begin at age 50.
Below are some of our featured research studies looking at new treatments for prostate cancer treatment. To search for more studies, visit our Search and Enroll Tool.
PATROL Study: Prostate Cancer Screening for People AT Genetic Risk FOr Aggressive Disease
Clinicaltrials.gov identifier: NCT04472338
Screening Study for Men at High Genetic Risk for Prostate Cancer
Clinicaltrials.gov identifier: NCT03805919
Screening in Men at High Risk of Developing Prostate Cancer
Clinicaltrials.gov identifier: NCT05608694
Prostate Cancer Genetic Risk Evaluation and Screening Study (PROGRESS)
Clinicaltrials.gov identifier: NCT05129605
Upright MRI for Prostate Cancer Screening
Clinicaltrials.gov identifier: NCT03474913
Study for People with Unexpected Genetic Results
Clinicaltrials.gov identifier: NCT02595957