Prostate cancer screening: Making the best choice

Screening asymptomatic men for prostate cancer (PCa) continues to be controversial: whether early diagnosis and treatment of PCa results in reduced disease-related mortality has not yet been demonstrated in a randomized trial. The primary question is whether PCa screening results in overdiagnosis, the detection and treatment of disease that would not otherwise increase morbidity or mortality. Ongoing trials are addressing this question, but results will not be available for several years. Thus, easily accessible methods for educating men about screening are needed, as men's level of awareness of the limitations of screening is low. However, prior studies of print and video-based prostate screening decision tools have shown that men's knowledge increases and that decisional conflict decreases following use. This study will provide the first assessment of an interactive website designed to educate men about PCa screening. We are conducting an NCI-and DOD-funded three arm randomized trial (website vs. booklet vs. usual care). Participants (planned N = 1875, current N = 877) are assessed by telephone interviews at baselines, 1 month, and 1 year post-randomization. Here we describe the development process and formative evaluation of the website.