Cancer specialists and urologists have urged men over 45 to get a PSA test so prostate cancer is caught early. The Bulgarian Oncology Scientific Society and the Bulgarian Urological Society are running their prevention campaign for the 10th time, BTA reported.
PSA, or prostate-specific antigen, is a tumour marker. Men with a family history of cancer should start testing at 40.
The number of new prostate cancer cases has risen over the past 10 years. When the disease is found in the first or second stage, almost all patients (close to 100%) live at least 10 years, and their quality of life stays the same as before the diagnosis. A study that ran for 23 years and ended in 2025 found that deaths from prostate cancer fall by 13% when men get PSA tests.
Prof Assen Dudov, chair of the Bulgarian Oncology Scientific Society, said prevention means testing people who have no complaints or symptoms.
Dr Nikolay Branzalov, chair of the Bulgarian Medical Union, sent greetings to the two societies. "You have shown that changing attitudes to public health takes persistence and commitment," he said. He said preventing the disease where possible is one of the most important things in the profession, and that frequent PSA testing is a major achievement in the care of Bulgarian men. He also urged men with no symptoms to have their tumour marker checked.
Prof Marin Georgiev, chair of the Bulgarian Urological Society, listed the signs that call for tests and a visit to a urologist: frequent urination, getting up at night, a feeling that the bladder is not empty, and a sudden need to urinate. He named older age, being white and a family history of cancer as risk factors. If a man's mother has had breast cancer, his risk of prostate cancer is 30% higher.
Prof Georgiev said prevention should rest on early diagnosis, and that deaths are starting to fall thanks to early detection and modern treatment.
On 2 November we reported that the Comprehensive Cancer Centre in Burgas will carry out prostate cancer checks every Friday in November. Men had to have a PSA test beforehand, and appointments were made by phone on 056 / 82 01 42.
"Very often, when the cancer reaches the metastatic stage, the patient comes to us complaining of lower back pain, because prostate cancer spreads to the bones," he said.