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To the Editor: In their study of the operating characteristics of prostate-specific antigen (PSA) in men with an initial PSA level of 3.0 ng/mL or lower, Dr Thompson and colleagues¹ achieved a biopsy rate or verification rate of 65% from the participants in the Prostate Cancer Prevention Trial (PCPT), corresponding to 5587 prostate biopsies. The authors do note that verification bias was present in their study, as those men who underwent biopsy were more likely to have a positive family history, to be of white race, and to be older than men who did not undergo biopsy. Accordingly, the authors adjusted for verification bias in their reported results.

In their discussion, the authors refer to a study in which we published PSA test characteristics after correcting for verification bias.² They state that we "attempted to correct for verification bias, but the conditions necessary for verification bias adjustment were not strictly . . . [Full Text of this Article]

Rinaa S. Punglia, MD, MPH
rpunglia@partners.org
Department of Radiation Oncology
Dana-Farber Cancer Institute/Brigham and Women's Hospital
Boston, Mass

Karen M. Kuntz, ScD
Department of Health Policy and Management
Harvard School of Public Health
Boston

William J. Catalona, MD
Department of Urology
Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine
Chicago, Ill

Anthony D’Amico, MD, PhD
Department of Radiation Oncology
Dana-Farber Cancer Institute/Brigham and Women's Hospital
Boston

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