Dr. Fernando Bianco

"If you can catch it early ... you can make a big difference" - Fernando Bianco MD, Wayne State

New York /PSA Rising/ June 4, 2001 -- The prostate cancer survival gap between African Americans and Caucasians may be closing.

A blood test might save your lifeThe survival gap may be narrowing between African Americans and Caucasians who have had prostate cancer and have been treated with radical prostatectomy, according to a new Wayne State University study.

Dr. Fernando Bianco, a WSU urologist at Harper University Hospital, and his colleagues conducted a study of 1,042 men who had radical prostatectomies between 1990 and 1999, about a third of whom were African American.The men were divided into two groups: those who had the procedure between 1990 and 1995 and those who had it between 1996 and 1999.

Although more Caucasian men than African-American men remained disease free between 1990 and 1995, the gap appeared to be closing between 1996 and 1999.Dr. Bianco believes the survival rate for African Americans improved because more cases were caught at an earlier stage and contained to the organ because of prostatic-specific-antigen (PSA) testing.
...
Dr. Bianco says this is changing."If you can catch it early enough, you can make a big difference, and I think that's the thing that's happening here," he said.

"If you can catch it early...you can make a big difference" - Fernando Bianco MD, Wayne State

New York /PSA Rising/ June 4, 2001 -- The prostate cancer survival gap between African Americans and Caucasians may be closing.

A blood test might save your lifeThe survival gap may be narrowing between African Americans and Caucasians who have had prostate cancer and have been treated with radical prostatectomy, according to a new Wayne State University study.

Dr. Fernando Bianco, a WSU urologist at Harper University Hospital, and his colleagues conducted a study of 1,042 men who had radical prostatectomies between 1990 and 1999, about a third of whom were African American.The men were divided into two groups: those who had the procedure between 1990 and 1995 and those who had it between 1996 and 1999.

Although more Caucasian men than African-American men remained disease free between 1990 and 1995, the gap appeared to be closing between 1996 and 1999.Dr. Bianco believes the survival rate for African Americans improved because more cases were caught at an earlier stage and contained to the organ because of prostatic-specific-antigen (PSA) testing.
...
Dr. Bianco says this is changing."If you can catch it early enough, you can make a big difference, and I think that's the thing that's happening here," he said.

Dr. Fernando Bianco , a WSU urologist at Harper University Hospital , and his colleagues conducted a study of 1 , 042 men who had radical prostatectomies between 1990 and 1999 , about a third of whom were African American.The men were divided into two groups : those who had the procedure between 1990 and 1995 and those who had it between 1996 and 1999.

Although more Caucasian men than African-American men remained disease free between 1990 and 1995 , the gap appeared to be closing between 1996 and 1999.Dr. Bianco believes the survival rate for African Americans improved because more cases were caught at an earlier stage and contained to the organ because of prostatic-specific-antigen ( PSA ) testing.

...
Dr. Bianco says this is changing.If you can catch it early enough , you can make a big difference , and I think that's the thing that's happening here , he said.

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Dr. Fernando Bianco, a WSU urologist at Harper University Hospital, and his colleagues conducted a study of 1,042 men who had radical prostatectomies between 1990 and 1999, about a third of whom were African American. The men were divided into two groups: those who had the procedure between 1990 and 1995 and those who had it between 1996 and 1999.

Although more Caucasian men than African-American men remained disease free between 1990 and 1995, the gap appeared to be closing between 1996 and 1999. Dr. Bianco believes the survival rate for African Americans improved because more cases were caught at an earlier stage and contained to the organ because of prostatic-specific-antigen (PSA) testing.

African American men have lagged behind whites in access to the PSA (Prostate specific antigen) blood test and other tests for early detection of prostate cancer.
...
Dr. Bianco says this is changing. "If you can catch it early enough, you can make a big difference, and I think that's the thing that's happening here," he said.

One of the researchers, Dr. Fernando Bianco, a WSU urologist, says earlier detection of prostate cancer helps explain the decline in relapse rates because more cases were caught at an earlier stage before the cancer spread outside the prostate. He believes this is due to prostatic-specific-antigen (PSA) testing that measures a protein made by the prostate and can indicate prostate cancer.

Dr. Fernando Bianco, a WSU urologist at Harper University Hospital, and his colleagues conducted a study of 1,042 men who had radical prostatectomies between 1990 and 1999, about a third of whom were African American.The men were divided into two groups: those who had the procedure between 1990 and 1995 and those who had it between 1996 and 1999. Although more Caucasian men than African-American men remained disease free in 1996 and 1999, Dr. Bianco believes the survival rate for African Americans improved because more cases were caught at an earlier stage and contained to the organ because of prostatic-specific-antigen (PSA) testing.
...
Dr. Bianco says this is changing."If you can catch it early enough, you can make a big difference, and I think that's the thing that's happening here," he said.

U.S. Surgeon General's Term to End

One of the researchers, Dr. Fernando Bianco, a WSU urologist, says earlier detection of prostate cancer helps explain the decline in relapse rates because more cases were caught at an earlier stage before the cancer spread outside the prostate.He believes this is due to prostatic-specific-antigen (PSA) testing that measures a protein made by the prostate and can indicate prostate cancer.

"We are doing a better job of screening," says Bianco."If you can catch it early enough, you can make a big difference, and I think that's the thing that's happening here."The results from the study were presented at an American Urological Association meeting in Anaheim, Calif., in June 2001

An abnormal PSA test indicates a change in the prostate, such as enlargement of the gland, infection or cancer.The American Cancer Society recommends men have regular PSA tests starting at age 50.Those at high risk, including African-Americans and men with a family history of the disease, are advised to have the test as early as age 40.
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Bianco says the findings may reflect the success of a prostate cancer awareness campaign carried out in black churches in Detroit, Mich., during the 1990s.The Detroit researcher says that with growing awareness and education about the disease, he expects researchers in other regions of the country "are going to start finding similar results."

According to the American Cancer Society, the following factors can increase a man's chances of having prostate cancer:

The risk of prostate cancer increases with age.Prostate cancer is more common among African-American men than among white men.A diet high in fat may play a part in causing prostate cancer.Men with close family members who have had prostate cancer may be more likely to get prostate cancer themselves.