Medical costs are substantial and rising for privately-insured men with abnormal prostate cancer screening results

Medical Xpress July 15, 2024
Wiley

Prostate-specific antigen (PSA) screening aims to identify men who may harbor potentially lethal prostate cancer, and those with high PSA results often require more extensive (and expensive) diagnostic testing to establish a diagnosis. New research reveals that the out-of-pocket costs for such additional tests are substantial, common, and rising. The findings are published online in the journal Cancer.

Abnormal screening tests (i.e., elevated PSA) warrant additional testing involving magnetic resonance imaging and/or prostate biopsies. High out-of-pocket costs for these tests—including copayment, coinsurance, and deductibles—may not only place a substantial burden on patients, but also may deter patients from going through with recommended screening.

To investigate the extent of such financial burdens, researchers analyzed information on 3,075,841 US privately insured men...

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