Home kit
PSA Test
Total prostate specific antigen, the standard first blood marker for the prostate, from a finger-prick or clinic sample.
- Doctor-reviewed results
- Laboratory analysis
- 1 to 2 working days from lab receipt
- No fasting required
What’s included
1 marker measured
PSA (total)
Prostate specific antigen (PSA), a blood test used to look for prostate problems, including prostate cancer and prostate enlargement. A raised level does not necessarily mean cancer: an enlarged prostate, a urine infection, and recent ejaculation, exercise or cycling can all affect the result.
Overview
PSA is the standard first blood marker for the prostate, and this kit lets you give the sample from a finger-prick at home. Men usually consider it from around 50, or from 45 with a family history of prostate cancer or Black African or Caribbean heritage, both of which raise the risk. Your GP can also arrange a PSA test on the NHS. It is also the number to follow over time if you have had one before.
PSA is made by the prostate and rises with anything that irritates it. An enlarged prostate, a urine infection, cycling, ejaculation and a recent prostate examination can all push it up, so a single raised result is read with care and often repeated. What counts as raised depends on your age, and the reviewing doctor explains your result against the laboratory's range and your age. This is a marker, not a cancer test.
Who this is for and who it isn’t
Who it’s for
- Men aged 45 and over
- Men over 50, or over 45 with a family history, wanting a first prostate marker
- Men of Black African or Caribbean heritage, where risk is higher
Who it isn’t for
- PSA is a marker, not a cancer test. A raised result most often turns out to be an enlarged prostate, a urine infection or simple irritation, and some prostate cancers never raise it at all, so a normal PSA is not an all-clear. It is also easily disturbed: cycling, sex, a recent examination or a urine infection all lift it.
- If you have trouble passing urine, see your GP as well, not instead. If you have pain, blood in your urine or you cannot pass urine at all, that needs medical attention now rather than a blood test. This test is for men aged 45 and over, the youngest age at which Prostate Cancer UK advises considering a PSA test.
- Anyone with a new, severe or worsening symptom: contact your GP or call NHS 111. A test you buy today is not a substitute for being examined.
Common reasons people choose this test
- Being over 50, or over 45 with a family history of prostate cancer
- Black African or Caribbean heritage, where risk is higher
- Following a previous PSA over time
- Wanting a starting figure before a GP conversation
These are reasons people choose to test, not signs that something is wrong. A result is one part of a picture your doctor puts together with your history and an examination.
What your result looks like
Every result is shown with the unit and the reference range exactly as the laboratory reported it, with the doctor’s note underneath.
- PSA (total)▲ High
- Result
- 4.6 µg/L
- Range
- age-specific (<3.0 at 50–59)
| Marker | Result | Units | Range | Flag |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| PSA (total) | 4.6 | µg/L | age-specific (<3.0 at 50–59) | ▲ High |
Doctor’s note (example)
PSA is above the threshold for your age. It is not a cancer test: infection, cycling, sex and an enlarged prostate all raise it. It is repeated after six weeks, and if still raised your GP arranges an MRI.
Values above are examples. Your report shows your own results with the laboratory’s units and reference range for your age and sex, reviewed, signed and released by a GMC-registered doctor.
How it works
- Your kit arrivesPosted to your door, with instructions and what you need to send your sample back.
- You take your sampleFinger-prick sample at home, or a clinic blood draw, your choice
- The laboratory analyses itYour sample is processed for the measurements included in this test. Lab processing typically takes 1 to 2 working days from receipt of your sample.
- A doctor reviews and releases itA GMC-registered doctor reads every result and signs the report before it reaches you.
- Sample
- Home finger-prick kit
- Preparation
- No fasting required
- Who it's for
- Men · ages 45+
How to prepare
What we can and can’t tell you
The reference range beside each result is the laboratory’s own. A result in range is not a clean bill of health and a result outside it is not a diagnosis. Most ranges cover about 95% of healthy people, so about 1 in 20 healthy people fall just outside any one range. No test result replaces an examination or your own doctor’s judgement, and none of these panels is a cancer screening programme.
Read the full note
The reference range printed beside each of your results is the laboratory's own, and it is the range that applies to your result. We do not apply a second range of our own, and we do not tell you that a result the laboratory reported as normal is nonetheless too low or too high. If you see a claim elsewhere that your result ought to sit inside a narrower band than the one the laboratory printed, treat it with caution and ask your doctor.
Some assays cannot give an exact figure above or below a certain point, and those results are reported the way the laboratory sends them, for example as a value greater than a stated number. A result in range is not a clean bill of health, and a result outside a range is not a diagnosis: most reference ranges are set to cover about 95% of healthy people, so some healthy people fall just outside them. No blood test replaces an examination, a scan or your own doctor's judgement, and none of these panels is a screening programme for cancer.
If you have a symptom that is new, severe, or getting worse, contact your GP or NHS 111 rather than waiting for a test result. In an emergency call 999.
Frequently asked questions
What should I avoid before the test?
No ejaculation for 48 hours, no vigorous cycling for 48 hours, and wait at least six weeks after a urine infection or any procedure involving the prostate. Each of these can lift the result on its own.
What counts as raised?
It depends on your age, so there is no single figure. Your report prints the laboratory's own reference range, and the reviewing doctor explains what your result means for someone your age.
What usually happens if it is above the range?
The reviewing doctor explains the result and the usual next step, which is a conversation with your GP. Your GP may repeat the test, especially if something such as a urine infection could have raised it. If it stays raised, most men are now offered an MRI scan before any biopsy. The report explains this.
How is this different from the PSA Prostate Check?
This measures total PSA. The PSA Prostate Check, taken at a clinic, also reports free PSA and the free to total ratio.
Does biotin affect the result?
It can. High-dose biotin (vitamin B7), often sold for hair, skin and nails, can make some hormone results read too high or too low. Laboratory advice is usually to leave at least 8 hours after a dose of 5 mg or more, and some advise longer, so the simplest approach is to skip it on the day of your sample. Tell us if you take it, and do not stop a medicine that a doctor has prescribed.
How long do results take?
The laboratory typically takes 1 to 2 working days from receiving your sample. This does not include kit delivery, sample collection or return postage. A doctor reviews your results before they are released.
Can I choose a home kit or a clinic?
Both, it is your choice at checkout. Either collect a finger-prick sample at home with the posted kit and send it back as the instructions explain, or book a clinic appointment and have a trained clinician take the sample for you.
Is a doctor involved?
Yes. Every result is reviewed by a GMC-registered doctor who signs it off and explains what it means and what to do next.
Is it confidential?
Your results are available through your secure patient portal. Our privacy policy explains how your information is handled and when it may be shared to provide your care.
What happens to my sample and results?
Your sample is analysed at a UKAS-accredited laboratory (ISO 15189). A GMC-registered doctor then reads every result and signs the report before it is released, so nothing reaches you unreviewed. There is no option to receive results without a doctor reading them first. The report arrives in your secure portal in plain English: each result with its unit and the laboratory's own reference range, and the doctor's note on what the set means read together. If a result sits outside its range the report says so and explains what usually happens next, which is most often a conversation with your own GP, who can act on it alongside your history and examination. Most reference ranges are set to cover about 95% of healthy people, so about 1 in 20 healthy people fall just outside any one of them. On a report with many results it is common for one to sit just outside its range, and a single number on its own rarely tells the whole story. If a result needs urgent attention, the reviewing doctor is alerted straight away and we contact you by phone the same working day rather than leaving it in the portal for you to find. If a specific result needs rechecking, the reviewing doctor says so in your report.
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