You may be aware from comments made elsewhere on our website and on our 'Red Letter' of the importance we put on the PSA Free to Total Ratios (Where we have them).This information is supplied by David Baxter-Smith, one of our unpaid Retired Urology Consultant advisers. His latest analysis of the Free to Total Ratio against the number of cancer finds are set-out below.

I'm sure you'll agree this makes for very interesting reading, particularly for those men with a Free to Total Ratio of 0.10 and below.

Should any of you receive a 'Red letter' from a PSA test we have been involved in, and with a particularly low Free to Total Ratio, we would advise you to share these statistics with your GP in any follow-up discussion you may have with them. Example result from the top of a Red Letter.

 

ANALYSIS OF PSA “FREE TO TOTAL RATIO” / CANCER FINDS

Free/Total Ratio           Cancer              Benign              Total              % Positive for cancer>0.35                                    4                       12                        16                                        25.00 0.35                                      1                       1                          2                                         50.000.34                                       5                       1                          6                                         83.33    0.33                                       0                       1                          1                                          0.000.32                                       0                       2                          2                                          0.000.31                                       1                       1                          2                                          50.000.30                                       1                      1                          2                                          50.000.29                                       3                       2                          5                                          60.000.28                                       3                       4                          7                                          42.860.27                                       3                       0                          3                                          100.000.26                                       2                       2                          4                                          50.000.25                                       3                       12                        15                                        20.000.24                                       3                       4                          7                                          42.860.23                                       8                       9                          17                                        47.06    0.22                                       12                    12                        24                                        50.000.21                                       10                    14                        24                                        41.670.20                                       18                    14                        32                                        56.250.19                                       22                    13                        35                                        62.860.18                                       20                    17                        37                                        54.050.17                                       23                    21                        44                                        52.270.16                                       24                    27                        51                                        47.060.15                                       31                    24                        55                                        56.360.14                                       32                    21                        53                                        60.380.13                                       44                    26                        70                                        62.860.12                                       47                    23                        70                                        67.140.11                                       59                    17                        76                                        77.630.10                                       55                    13                        68                                        80.880.09                                       65                    9                          74                                        87.840.08                                       61                    13                        74                                        82.430.07                                       59                    3                          62                                        95.160.06                                       65                    4                          69                                        94.200.05                                       52                    6                          58                                        89.660.04                                       53                    6                          59                                        89.830.03                                       17                    1                          18                                        94.440.02                                       4                       0                          4                                          100.00 TOTAL                                  810                  336                     1146NOTES:

1. Whilst it is difficult to draw any firm conclusions on the ratios 0.26 and above because the numbers are small and therefore subject to significant fluctuation, there is a clear indication for ratios 0.10 and below that the lower the ratio the higher the risk, particularly as sample sizes are reasonable.
2. Statistics as at 30th November 2018

This Summary is produced from information supplied by David Baxter Smith M.A, Sc, M.B, B.Ch, B.A.O, F.R.C.S Retired Consultant Urologist, an unpaid Adviser to GFCT charity. 

Above analysis also available to download from our website: Link

(Downloads page - look for 'Free to Total Ratio analysis' under Other Useful Downloads.)