Siteman Cancer Center launches cancer screening initiative to address racial disparities
Initiative includes educational campaign, opportunities for free prostate cancer screenings in St. Louis area
Getty ImagesSiteman Cancer Center at Barnes-Jewish Hospital and Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis is launching a prostate cancer screening initiative along with an educational campaign in the St. Louis region to address racial disparities in prostate cancer.
Prostate cancer is the most common cancer in men and the second most common cause of cancer death. However, African American men have a 60% higher incidence of prostate cancer and the highest mortality rate of prostate cancer worldwide.
Siteman Cancer Center at Barnes-Jewish Hospital and Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis is launching a prostate cancer screening initiative along with an educational campaign in the St. Louis region to address this racial disparity in prostate cancer. Support for this initiative is provided by AstraZeneca, a global, science-led biopharmaceutical company.
The educational campaign will aim to spread awareness among African American men in the St. Louis area about their higher risk for prostate cancer (one in six Black men) and why they need to start screening for prostate cancer at ages 40 to 45. In addition to providing education on prostate cancer risks, Siteman is providing access to free prostate cancer screenings with the prostate specific antigen (PSA) test. The PSA test is a simple blood test to measure the amount of PSA protein produced by the prostate. Elevated PSA levels may be an indicator of prostate problems such as prostate cancer.
Siteman is offering several ways for men to get screened for prostate cancer through its website, www.getscreenednow.com/prostatetest. On the website, men can search by ZIP code to find a screening location near them, or men 40 or older can request a voucher for a free screening through Washington University’s Program for the Elimination of Cancer Disparities (PECaD). These vouchers can be used for free PSA screenings at the lab in the Center for Advanced Medicine on the Washington University Medical Campus or at Christian Hospital in north St. Louis County. Walk-ins are available, but appointments are preferred by calling PECaD at 314-286-2587.
A calendar of free prostate cancer screening events is also available on the website, which includes screening events hosted by community partners, including local churches and other organizations.
