The availability of increasingly sensitive testing devices has created a debate over when men should be tested for prostate cancer, how often, and whether men under 50 with no symptoms should be routinely screened. Opponents say mass screening would be expensive, and the verdict is still out on whether early detection can curb the disease's mortality rate. But proponents say early detection is the closest thing currently to a cure and that it can save lives. Besides being thrown off by noncancerous conditions, the tests can vary between manufacturers. Doctors then may take biopsies of various sectors of the prostate using tiny hollow needles inserted through the rectum.
Biopsies are the only definitive way to determine if prostate cancer is present.
Staging also depends on the extent and location of cancer outside the confines of the prostate. Another important measure, the Gleason score, gauges the probable aggressiveness of the tumor based on the cellular differences of the cancer. Tumor cells that look similar to normal cells tend to be less aggressive, while those distributed randomly with uneven edges are likely to spread rapidly. Two numbers, each from 1 to 5, are assigned. The higher the numbers when the two are added, the more aggressive the tumor is likely to be.