A new study has shown a link between a man's insurance status and the severity of his prostate cancer at the time of diagnosis.
The study, which will appear in the journal Cancer Epidemiology Biomarkers and Prevention and was conducted by researchers from the American Cancer Society, analyzed data from over 300,000 men with prostate cancer and f0und that those men with no insurance or Medicaid (United States government-funded health insurance for low-income individuals) had higher initial PSA levels, higher Gleason scores, and later stage (more advanced) disease than men with private health insurance.
This difference may be due to the lack of coverage for screening PSA testing and other preventive health care measures for men with no insurance or Medicaid. These men, who are likely to be of lower income, may forgo getting PSA screening because of the cost - thus leading to a longer time before they are diagnosed with prostate cancer.
