Prostate Specific Antigen (PSA), Profile
The PSA profile includes total PSA, free PSA, and the free/total ratio. This comprehensive assessment provides the best non-invasive evaluation of prostate cancer risk.
12 hours
Turnaround
Blood
Sample
What the Prostate Specific Antigen (PSA), Profile test tells you
The PSA profile is a package rather than a single measurement. From one blood sample the laboratory reports the total prostate-specific antigen, the unbound fraction of it, and the relationship between the two. Ordering them together is deliberate: taking them from the same tube, at the same moment, is the only way the comparison between them can be trusted, and separate visits would introduce differences that have nothing to do with your prostate.
Each component answers a different part of one question. The total says how much of the enzyme is leaking out of the gland into the blood. That quantity rises with cancer, but it rises far more often with benign prostatic hyperplasia, the age-related enlargement that is extremely common in older men, and it also rises with prostatitis, urinary infection, urinary retention and any recent physical disturbance of the gland. So a raised total is not a diagnosis of cancer; it is a question. The unbound fraction and its relationship to the total address that question by describing the character of the PSA present rather than just the amount, because benign and malignant tissue tend to shift the balance between bound and unbound forms in opposite directions. Read as a pattern, the profile is more informative than the total on its own — though a result within the usual range still does not rule prostate cancer out.
What the profile does is help a urologist choose the next step: reassure and repeat later, arrange imaging, or move to a biopsy. It also creates a richer baseline, since how each component changes over the years is more telling than any single visit. What it cannot do is diagnose — prostate cancer is confirmed on tissue. And for a man with no symptoms, deciding to run the profile at all involves a real trade-off, because testing can catch cancers that matter and can also lead to investigation and treatment of cancers that never would have. Both are true, and which weighs more depends on your circumstances, so the conversation with your doctor belongs before the test.
Recommended for men over 50 (or over 40 with risk factors) as a comprehensive prostate cancer screening. Also used for monitoring after prostate cancer treatment.
Measuring total and free PSA on the same tube is what makes the comparison between them reliable, which two separate visits cannot guarantee.
The combined pattern separates benign enlargement from cancer more specifically than the total alone, which can spare procedures that would not change management.
A profile recorded while you are well gives future results something meaningful to be measured against.
In men under active surveillance or after treatment, the profile is repeated to detect a change that actually matters.
Reasons your doctor may request the Prostate Specific Antigen (PSA), Profile test
Your doctor may order this test for any of the reasons below. Some are routine checks, others follow specific symptoms or an earlier result.
Clarifying a raised PSA
You have discussed prostate testing with your doctor and want a fuller assessment than the total alone.
A previous total PSA was modestly raised and the reason is not yet clear.
A previous biopsy found nothing but your PSA has not settled.
Urinary symptoms
You have urinary symptoms suggesting an enlarged prostate.
Family risk & active surveillance
A father or brother has had prostate cancer and your doctor is assessing your risk.
You are on active surveillance and attending for scheduled follow-up.
No fasting window — pick any slot that suits you, online or on WhatsApp.
A DHA-licensed nurse collects your sample at home or in the office — free home collection.
A physician-reviewed, easy-to-read report lands securely by WhatsApp and email.
Total and free PSA with their ratio.
Prostate Specific Antigen (PSA), Profile
Total and free PSA with their ratio.
This panel reports total PSA, free PSA and the free-to-total ratio, used together to assess prostate health. See your detailed report.
This test is reported descriptively rather than on a numeric scale — each finding below explains what your report may say.
This information is for general education only and is not medical advice. Reference ranges can vary by laboratory, age, sex, and individual factors. Always consult your physician or doctor to interpret your results.
What a higher result can point to
- Benign prostatic hyperplasia, the commonest reason for a raised total in older men.
- Prostatitis or a urinary tract infection, which can lift the measurements sharply and temporarily.
- Prostate cancer, which is the possibility the profile is designed to help weigh.
- Recent ejaculation, cycling, a rectal examination, catheterisation or a prostate biopsy.
- Urinary retention or other instrumentation of the urinary tract.
These are possibilities, not diagnoses. A single value outside the reference range is interpreted alongside your symptoms, history and other tests — your doctor decides what it means for you.
What this test cannot tell you
- The profile shifts probabilities; it cannot diagnose or exclude prostate cancer, which still requires tissue, and a raised total is not by itself evidence of cancer.
- Some prostate cancers, including a few aggressive ones, do not raise PSA appreciably, so an unremarkable profile is reassuring rather than conclusive.
- Finasteride, dutasteride and testosterone therapy alter the measurements and must be taken into account when reading them.
- The free component degrades in the sample more readily than the total, so the comparison depends on prompt and consistent handling.
Risks of the blood draw
- Mild bruising or brief soreness where the needle went in.
- Occasional lightheadedness, which settles after a few minutes of rest.
- Bleeding or infection at the site, which is rare with sterile single-use equipment.
- 1The profile reports total PSA, free PSA and the relationship between them from a single sample.
- 2A raised total is common and usually has a benign explanation; the free component helps judge how likely that is.
- 3A low PSA result is the expected finding and requires no action of its own.
- 4Recent prostate manipulation, infection or hard cycling can distort every component.
- 5Whether to test at all when you have no symptoms is an informed choice to make with your doctor, weighing early detection against investigation and treatment you might not have needed.
Frequently Asked Questions
Everything you need to know about the Prostate Specific Antigen (PSA), Profile test. Can't find what you're looking for?
Talk to our team→The total tells you how much enzyme is present, not what kind of prostate tissue is releasing it. The unbound fraction adds that second dimension, and together the two separate benign enlargement from cancer better than the total does alone.
That combination often leads to watchful repeat testing rather than an immediate biopsy, sometimes with an MRI in between. Your urologist decides from the whole picture, including the examination and the size of the gland.
Yes, though it is less likely. A minority of tumours release little PSA, so persistent symptoms or an abnormal examination are investigated regardless of what the blood result shows.
That depends on your age, your risk factors and what the first result showed, so your doctor sets the interval. Consistency matters more than frequency — the same laboratory and the same preparation each time, so that any change over the years is real.
The PSA profile includes total PSA, free PSA, and the free/total ratio. This comprehensive assessment provides the best non-invasive evaluation of prostate cancer risk.
Recommended for men over 50 (or over 40 with risk factors) as a comprehensive prostate cancer screening. Also used for monitoring after prostate cancer treatment.
No, fasting is not required for the Free & Total PSA Ratio test, so you can eat and drink normally beforehand.
The Free & Total PSA Ratio test uses a blood sample, collected quickly by our DHA-licensed phlebotomist with minimal discomfort.
Results for the Free & Total PSA Ratio test are typically ready within 12 hours. You will receive a secure digital report, and your Smart Report highlights anything outside the normal range.
The Free & Total PSA Ratio test is AED 519, which includes free home sample collection and a physician-reviewed report. You can also build a custom panel and pay only for the markers you choose.
Yes. A DHA-licensed phlebotomist can collect your sample at home or the office anywhere in Dubai at no extra cost, 7 days a week. See how it works.
It is commonly chosen by adults & at-risk groups. If you are not sure it is right for you, our care team is happy to advise.
Add the Free & Total PSA Ratio test to your cart and complete the short booking wizard, choosing home collection or a lab visit. Guest checkout lets you book without creating an account.
Yes. It is processed at our EIAC-accredited laboratory (ISO 15189:2022) under DHA license 0046381 and verified by board-certified pathologists.
Every report includes reference ranges and plain-language notes. If you have questions, our care team can arrange a clinician review — just get in touch.
Absolutely. Add it to a curated health package or bundle it with any of our 160+ biomarkers, often from a single sample in one visit.