The Importance of the Gleason
There is nothing in the diagnosis of prostate cancer more important than the Gleason Grade and Score. It is this one diagnostic test that all of your present and future treatment may be based on - the single most important part of your diagnosis. If the Gleason is read wrong - you may be making a mistake in your treatment decision. I Have seen men diagnosed with prostate cancer, when the slides were graded by an expert - they did not have prostate cancer. On the other hand I have seen men graded with a very low grade disease when in fact they have a very high grade and aggressive cancer. In these cases the treatment decision is always wrong if they are not read by an expert.
It is important that the reading of your biopsy slides be done by an expert to find the correct Gleason. We have found that the readings of the slides from a biopsy when done by a local pathologists is frequently wrong. We have studies that show that the errors were as high as 60% - and usually overgraded. One might say your life is dependant on the proper grading. This is not to say that the local pathologists are not good - it is just from experience we know that a select few are consistant in their findings.
A listing of experts can be found by clicking "here" .
Once the Gleason has been read by an expert you will receive a number like 3+3=6. The "6" is the Gleason Score. The 3+3 are the Gleason Grades. Now take the Gleason your PSA and your Stage and you can learn what your chances are in terms of the cancer being contained or spread elsewhere.
The tables have been updated as of 2007 with the knowledge gained from having treated thousands of patients, to reflect the trends in presentation and pathologic stage for men newly diagnosed with clinically localized prostate cancer at James Buchanan Brady Urological Institute. Clinicians can use these nomograms to counsel individual patients and help them make important decisions regarding their disease. For the latest tables insert your PSA, Stage and Gleason score "here".
Click on the following titles to get additional information about the importance of the Gleason score and how it is figured.
Understanding Gleason Grading System for Prostate Cancer
The Five Gleason Grades
Should tiny foci of cancer in needle biopsies be graded?
Is cancer with Gleason score of 3+4=7 different from 4+3=7?
What about tertiary Gleason patterns observed in needle biopsies?
See images of the various Gleason grades of prostate cancer by clicking "here". See the advanced aggressive variants of prostate cancer by clicking "here" .
Page Reviewed and/or Updated:
November 05, 2008
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Information You Should Read
Stanford Univ. video on PCa
The Prostate - What, Where
The Prostate Biopsy
How To Tell a "Physician Artist"
The Doctors Appointment
Insignificant Cancer
Vocabulary, Glossary, etc.
Tables, Tests, Markers etc.
Gleason Info and Partin Tables
PSA - What it is and means
Locally Advanced Cancer
BPH
Prostatitis
Other Diagnostic Tools
Veterans Information
