Prevalence and Predictors of Routine Prostate-specific Antigen Screening in Medicare Beneficiaries in the USA: Retrospective Cohort Analysis Using Machine Learning

Objective: To estimate the prevalence and predictors of Prostate-Specific Antigen (PSA) screening among Medicare beneficiary men using machine learning algorithms. Methods: A retrospective cohort analysis used the Medicare Current Beneficiary Survey Public Use File (MCBS PUF) data from 2015 and 2016. Predictors of PSA screening were examined through multivariable logistic regression and machine learning techniques. Results: Over half (56%) of Medicare beneficiary men had PSA screening during 2015-2016. Ages between 65 and 75 years, education above high school, being married, higher annual income (>$25,000), being overweight or obese, and more than 20 outpatient office visits were significant predictors. Conclusion: PSA screening uptake was 56 percent among Medicare beneficiaries and it was driven by beneficiaries’ age, education, marital status, income, body mass index, and number of outpatient visits. Although Medicare provides free annual PSA screening, uptake was higher among high-income beneficiaries. Awareness strategies would help inform privileges for PSA screening under Medicare and the advantages of routine screening for mitigating the health risks.