Lifestyle and Clinical Health Behaviors and PSA Tests

This study assessed the association of lifestyle and clinical health behaviors with prostate specific antigen (PSA) tests. The study used cross-sectional data from the 2002 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS). We used Stata 8.0 to take into account the complex sample design in analyses. Both lifestyle and clinical health behaviors were associated with PSA use. Life style behaviors associated with PSA use include not smoking, moderate or no drinking, regular seatbelt use, and leisure physical activity. Clinical health behaviors associated with PSA use were influenza vaccines and colorectal cancer screening. The strongest associations were with colorectal cancer screening and access to care. The strong alignment of PSA testing with positive health behaviors suggests men view PSA tests as protective. This perspective may complicate health education messages to support informed decision making about prostate cancer screening.