text: how do u find out prostate cancer?   once per year digital rectal exams and psa tests are the most effective preliminary means to detect prostate cancer.   if you the doctor feels something during the dre then further tests may follow. if you psa is high, usually above 3.6, then further testing is warranted. if your psa is below 3.6, but has risen by .75 per year, then additional tests may follow.  if one of the above conditions arises then you may be asked to see a urlogist who will want to do a biopsy. ask for an fpsa (free psa) test first. if you 'free' psa level is below 20% by all means have the biopsy. if the free psa is above 20%, and the doctor did not feel an irregularity, you might consider waiting and watching for 6 months to a year.   otherwise a biopsy where the doctor takes at least 10 samples should be done. since this is invasive, but not painful, the biopsy should be the last resort to finish your testing for cancer.  if the lab determines you have a cancer, then send the lab results to another private lab to have the results confirmed, before you starting treating your cancer.  the best labs in the country are..  the johns hopkins medical institutions anatomic pathology consultation service 401 n. broadway weinberg bldg., room 2278 baltimore, md 21231-2401 phone (410) 955-2405 attention: johnathan epstein  bostwick laboratories 2807 n. parham road, suite 114 richmond, va 23294 phone (800) 214-6628 attention: david bostwick speak to danijela bijelic for information