If you take your health seriously and have been told that you have a normal PSA or Prostate Specific Antigen, which is a protein produced exclusively by prostate cells, then I would insist you ask your doctor to order the IGF-1 test. Unfortunately, most men are under the assumption that a PSA of 4 dl/ml gives them a green light of being free of prostate cancer. It is a fact that 15% of men with a PSA of less than 4 already have prostate cancer. If you PSA is between 4 and 10 dl/ml, you have a 25% chance of having prostate cancer. Prostate cancer is the second most common cause of cancer death in US men. As stated before, do not settle on the false assumption that you are safe just because your doctor has told you that your PSA is within the normal range.
Insulin like Growth Factor or (IGF-1) is a peptide that controls the action of growth hormones in the body. If the IGF-1 levels are elevated, men are 4 times more likely to develop prostate cancer. With long term evaluation, this test is so powerful that 7 years later when the men started to develop prostate cancer the PSA had just started to turn positive. With this information you may now be asking yourself what you can do if your IGF-1 levels are elevated? The answer is, start taking the supplement Lycopene. Lycopene is one of the most powerful inhibitors of the IGF-1. This potent supplement not only effectively controls the IGF-1but has been shown to protect and secure the normal communication between cells which may have been damaged by environmental chemicals such as pesticides. When this communication is effected, the cells have the potential to grow out of control leading to an increased risk of cancer. The good thing is lycopene has been found to control this and stop cancer cell growth.