By Dr .Muhammad Mosleh Uddin
âĸ
08 Aug, 2026
Effects of Dutasteride on serum PSA level in BPH
đ´ Dutasteride āĻā§āύ Serum PSA level āĻĒā§āϰāĻžā§ 50% āĻāĻŽāĻŋā§ā§ āĻĻā§ā§? āĻāĻŦāĻ āĻāĻ information āĻāĻž clinically āĻāϤ important āĻā§āύ?
PSA āĻšāϞ⧠prostate cancer screening āĻāϰ āĻāĻāĻāĻŋ important lab value.
āĻĒā§āĻļā§āύā§āĻā§āϰ PSA value interpret āĻāϰāĻžāϰ āϏāĻŽā§ āĻāĻā§ āĻĒā§āĻļā§āύā§āĻāĻā§ ask āĻāϰāĻŦā§āύ āϝā§, āϤāĻŋāύāĻŋ Dutastetride/Finasteride (5 alpha reductase inhibitor) āĻāĻžāϤā§ā§ āĻŽā§āĻĄāĻŋāϏāĻŋāύ āĻāĻžāĻā§āĻā§āύ āĻāĻŋāύāĻž āĻāĻā§ āĻĨā§āĻā§āĻāĨ¤
āϝāĻĻāĻŋ āĻā§ā§ā§ āĻĨāĻžāĻā§, āϤāĻžāĻšāϞ⧠āĻĒā§āĻļā§āύā§āĻā§āϰ PSA value āϝāϤ āĻĒāĻžāĻŦā§āύ, āϏā§āĻāĻžāĻ⧠⧍ āĻĻāĻŋā§ā§ āĻā§āĻŖ āĻāϰāĻŦā§āύāĨ¤ āϤāĻžāϰāĻĒāϰ āϝ⧠value āĻāĻž āĻāϏāĻŦā§, āϏā§āĻāĻžāĻ āĻšāϞ⧠āĻĒā§āĻļā§āύā§āĻā§āϰ āĻāϏāϞ PSA value.
đ´ Why does dutasteride reduce PSA by approximately 50%?
Dutasteride āĻšāϞ⧠āĻāĻāĻāĻŋ 5-alpha-reductase inhibitor. āĻāĻāĻŋ inhibit āĻāϰā§,
đ Type 1 5Îą-reductase āĻā§ āĻāĻŦāĻ
đ Type 2 5Îą-reductase āĻā§
āϤāĻžāĻ Dutasteride āĻā§āϞā§:
đ Testosterone â DHT âââ
đ DHT āĻšāϞ⧠prostate-āĻāϰ transition zone-āĻāϰ prostatic epithelial/stromal tissue maintain āĻāϰāĻžāϰ āĻāύā§āϝ major androgen (acts as growth factor for prostate)
đ Chronic DHT suppression āĻšāϞā§:
Dutasteride â â DHT â prostatic epithelial atrophy/apoptosis â â prostate volume â â PSA production
Exactly āĻāĻ āĻāĻžāϰāĻŖā§āĻ Dutasteride āĻā§āϞ⧠āĻĒā§āϰāĻžā§ 3â6 months āĻĒāϰ⧠serum PSA level āĻĒā§āϰāĻžā§ 50% āĻāĻŽā§ āϝāĻžā§ Baseline āĻĨā§āĻā§āĨ¤
đ´ Summart flowchart:
Dutasteride
â
5Îą-reductase inhibition
â
DHT âââ
â
Prostatic epithelial cells atrophy â
â
PSA production â
â
Serum PSA â 50% lower from baseline
đ´ āĻāĻāύ āĻāϏāĻŋ, āĻā§āύ āĻāĻāĻž āĻāĻžāύāĻž āĻāϤ important?
āĻāĻāĻžāύā§āĻ āĻāϏāϞ clinical āĻŦā§āϝāĻžāĻĒāĻžāϰāĻāĻž āĻāϞāĻšāĻžāĻŽāĻĻā§āϞāĻŋāϞā§āϞāĻžāĻšāĨ¤
āϧāϰā§āύ āĻāĻāĻāύ patient-āĻāϰ before taking dutasteride, PSA level āĻāĻŋāϞ 6 ng/mL.
Dutasteride, ā§Ŧ āĻŽāĻžāϏ āĻāĻžāĻā§āĻžāϰ āĻĒāϰ āĻĒā§āĻļā§āύā§āĻā§āϰ PSA level āĻāĻāύ 3 ng/mL.
āĻāĻŋāύā§āϤ⧠āύāĻžāĻš, āĻāĻāĻž āϤāĻžāϰ āĻāϏāϞ PSA value āύāĻžāĻšāĨ¤ āĻāĻžāϰāĻŖ āϏ⧠āϤ⧠Dutasteride āĻāĻžāĻā§āĻā§āĨ¤ āĻāĻ value āĻā§ adjust āĻāϰ⧠actual value āĻŦā§āϰ āĻāϰāϤ⧠āĻšāĻŦā§āĨ¤
āϤāĻžāĻšāϞ⧠āĻāĻāĻžāύ⧠āĻĒā§āĻļā§āύā§āĻā§āϰ actual PSA value āĻšāĻŦā§, 3 à 2 = 6 ng/mL.
āϤāĻžāϰāĻŽāĻžāύ⧠āĻĒā§āĻļā§āύā§āĻ Dutasteride āĻ āĻŋāĻāĻ āĻžāĻ āĻāĻžāĻā§āĻā§āĨ¤ Medicine āĻāĻžāĻ āĻāϰāĻā§ āĻāϞāĻšāĻžāĻŽāĻĻā§āϞāĻŋāϞā§āϞāĻžāĻš, āĻāĻāĻž āϤāĻžāϰ āĻĒā§āϰāĻŽāĻžāĻŖāĨ¤
đ´ āϤāĻžāĻšāϞ⧠āĻāĻŋ āĻŦā§āĻāϞā§āύ?
âĨ6 months dutasteride āύā§āĻā§āĻžāϰ āĻĒāϰ āĻāĻāĻāĻŋ isolated PSA measurement-āĻāϰ āĻā§āώā§āϤā§āϰā§,
đ Adjusted PSA = Measured PSA Ã 2
đ´ āĻāĻā§āĻāĻž āϝāĻĻāĻŋ āĻāĻāĻžāύ⧠āĻāĻŽāύ āĻšāϤ⧠āϝā§,
Before treatment:
āĻĒā§āĻļā§āύā§āĻā§āϰ PSA = 6 ng/mL
After 6 months of Dutasteride intake:
PSA = 5 ng/mL
āϤāĻžāĻšāϞ⧠āĻāĻŋāύā§āϤ āĻāĻĒāύāĻžāĻā§ alert āĻšā§ā§ āϝā§āϤ⧠āĻšāĻŦā§āĨ¤
đ´ āĻā§āύ?
āĻāĻžāϰāĻŖ Dutasteride āĻā§āϞ⧠āϤ⧠PSA production suppress āĻšā§ā§ 50% āĻ āĻāϞ⧠āĻāϏāĻž āĻāĻāĻŋāϤ āĻāĻŋāϞ Baseline āĻĨā§āĻā§āĨ¤ āĻ
āϰā§āĻĨāĻžā§ 3 ng/mL āĻšāĻā§āĻž āĻāĻāĻŋāϤ āĻāĻŋāϞāĨ¤Â
āĻāĻŋāύā§āϤ⧠āĻāĻāĻžāύ⧠PSA value āĻāĻŽā§āύāĻŋāĨ¤ Dutasteride āĻāĻžāĻā§āĻž āϏāϤā§āĻŦā§āĻ āϝāĻĻāĻŋ PSA value 50% āύāĻž āĻāĻŽā§, āĻ
āĻĨāĻŦāĻž āĻāϞāĻā§ Baseline value āĻĨā§āĻā§ āĻāϰ⧠rise āĻāϰā§, āϤāĻžāĻšāϞ⧠āĻāĻĒāύāĻžāĻ⧠⧍ āĻāĻž āĻŦāĻŋāώ⧠āĻāĻŋāύā§āϤāĻž āĻāϰāϤ⧠āĻšāĻŦā§āĨ¤
đ āĻĒā§āĻļā§āύā§āĻ āĻ āĻŋāĻāĻ āĻžāĻāĻāĻžāĻŦā§ Dutasteride āĻāĻžāĻā§āĻā§ āĻāĻŋāύāĻžāĨ¤
đ āĻĒā§āĻļā§āύā§āĻā§āϰ Prostate cancer develop āĻāϰā§āĻā§ āĻāĻŋāύāĻžāĨ¤
āĻāĻžāϰāĻŖ Malignancy āĻšāϞ⧠Cell proliferation āĻāϤ āĻŦāĻžā§ā§ āϝā§, Dutasteride āϤāĻāύ āĻļāϤ āĻā§āώā§āĻāĻž āĻāϰā§āĻ PSA value āĻāĻŽāĻžāϤ⧠āĻĒāĻžāϰ⧠āύāĻžāĨ¤ Malignant cells āĻā§āϞ⧠āĻŦā§āĻļāĻŋ āĻŦā§āĻļāĻŋ PSA synthesis āĻāϰāϤ⧠āĻĨāĻžāĻā§āĨ¤
That means, Dutasteride āĻāĻžāĻā§āĻž āĻ
āĻŦāϏā§āĻĨāĻžā§ PSA value reference range āĻāϰ āĻā§āϤāϰ āĻĨāĻžāĻāϞā§āĻ āĻāĻĒāύāĻŋ allert āĻĨāĻžāĻāĻŦā§āύāĨ¤ āϝāĻĻāĻŋ āϏā§āĻāĻž 50% āύāĻž āĻāĻŽā§ Baseline āĻĨā§āĻā§āĨ¤
đ´ SBA
A 68-year-old man with BPH has been taking dutasteride for 1 year. His current PSA is 3.2 ng/mL. What is the approximate PSA value to use for comparison with an untreated man?
A. 1.6 ng/mL
B. 3.2 ng/mL
C. 4.8 ng/mL
D. 6.4 ng/mL
E. 9.6 ng/mL
Answer: D. 6.4 ng/mL
Because after âĨ6 months of dutasteride intake: Adjusted PSA â 3.2 Ã 2 = 6.4 ng/mL
"Ã2" rule-āĻāĻžāĻā§ absolute mathematical law āĻšāĻŋāϏā§āĻŦā§ interpret āĻāϰāĻž āĻāĻāĻŋāϤ āύā§āĨ¤ āĻāĻžāϰāĻŖ ~50% PSA reduction āĻšāϞ⧠āĻāĻāĻāĻž average predictable effect, āĻāĻŋāύā§āϤ⧠individual response āĻāĻāĻā§ vary āĻāϰāϤ⧠āĻĒāĻžāϰā§āĨ¤
đ´ Serial PSA monitoringāĨ¤āĻāϰ āĻā§āώā§āϤā§āϰ⧠important āĻšāϞā§:
āĻāĻāĻāĻŋ āύāϤā§āύ baseline PSA value/nadir establish āĻāϰāĻž āĻāĻŦāĻ subsequently PSA value āĻŦāĻžā§āĻā§ āĻāĻŋāύāĻž āϏā§āĻĻāĻŋāĻā§ āύāĻāϰ āϰāĻžāĻāĻž āĻāύāĻļāĻž āĻāϞā§āϞāĻžāĻšāĨ¤
Reference
Davidson's Principles and Practice of Medicine
Harrison's Principles of Internal Medicine
FDA Avodart (Dutasteride) Prescribing Information
đ Feel the MEDICINE course
Dedicated for 5th year
Dr. Muhammad Mosleh Uddin