In the case of prostate cancer, this test can be performed at various stages of the illness.
It may be necessary when the patient is in the initial stage (when the cancer is discovered) to confirm if it is only located in the prostate or if there are tumours elsewhere.
It can be very useful when “biochemical recurrence” is detected (i.e. when the PSA levels rises after the patient’s initial treatment and after the PSA had dropped).
Finally, it may also be useful when the tumour has metastasised to assess the extent of the illness.