September is Prostate Cancer Awareness Month, a time to focus on the most common cancer, second to non-melanoma skin cancer, and the critical role early detection plays in saving men’s lives.

For Taylor Brewer, MSM, PA-C, of Vanderbilt University Medical Center and Patrick Dougherty, MPAS, PA-C, of UT Southwestern Medical Center, the month also highlights the many ways PAs guide patients from screening to survivorship.

First Screening to Long-Term Recovery
Brewer has spent her eight-year PA career practicing in urology, leading a team of 11 PAs and NPs in Vanderbilt’s Department of Urology. She sees patients across the spectrum — pre- and post-operative, new and returning — and often serves as the first point of contact for those referred for elevated PSA levels.

“There are many misconceptions about prostate cancer,” Brewer said. “Prostate cancer, especially in its early stages, often causes no symptoms. That’s why we have a screening test — the PSA. On the other hand, urinary symptoms don’t always mean cancer, and PSA testing isn’t perfect. It’s a screening tool, not a definitive diagnosis.”

(Photo: Patrick Dougherty, MPAS, PA-C, and Taylor Brewer, PA-C.)

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