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Getting a Second Opinion for a Prostate Nodule

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Last Modified: November 21, 2003

Dear OncoLink "Ask The Experts,"
My internist discovered a lump on my prostate during a digital rectal exam (D.R.E.) my PSA is 1.11. I was referred to a urologist. The urologist repeated the D.R.E. and stated that the lump is there but it is nothing to worry about. Should I get a second opinion? 

Alan J. Wein, MD, Professor and Chair of the Division of Urology at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, responds:

In my opinion, you should definitely have a second opinion. Any nodule may be a potential cancer. The unfortunate fact is that 20 percent of people with prostate cancer have a normal PSA reading. I would seek a second urologist's opinion immediately.