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I’m wondering if either of these imaging technologies results in some type of calculated Gleason Score?
No. The only way in which a Gleason Score is arrived at in the diagnostic process is by examining material obtained from a needle biopsy. If you have not seen this section Gleason Grades you might find it useful.
Color Doppler scans, in the right hands, are used to focus on areas within the gland where it appears that atypical cells are developing. A biopsy needle is then guided to this area and, it is claimed, this produces a better quality biopsy outcome, as compared with a 'blind' biopsy procedure which merely takes samples from the gland in a pre-set pattern.
A number of men have used or considered using Color Doppler procedures and if you go to a Site Search Engine (they are on many of the Site pages, but perhaps the easiest one to find is here on the HOME PAGE LINKS ) and enter Color Doppler you'll find the relevant Experiences. I would suggested that the most useful person to contact would be JON NOWLIN who has some good scientificslly based views on the subject and who has been using this type of scan to monitor the (lack of) progress of his diagnosed prostate cancer.
As Terry said, there is not substitute for a biopsy to determine if you have cancer. I had both the MRIS and Color doppler ultrasound and feel that the color doppler in the hands of a specialist is superior to the newer MRI technologies. The advantage of a color dopppler is that it is less expensive and a biopsy can by done immediately to any suspicious area and garanteed that that area is hit precisely. You cannot do a biopsy with an MRIS and a biopsy must be done later with no garantee that the suspicious area found will be hit by the biopsy. The MRIS cannot see small tumors and is not as good as CDU at seeing into the anterior region.
The key to either scan is the radiologist reading the scan and not the technology; It's the Indian and not the arrow as the top radiologist will tell you. Unfortunately at some of the top institutions the MRIs are read by interns, so make sure you are getting the best radiologist familiar with prostate cancer to read your scans. You can't go wrong with a CDU from Dr Duke Bahn in Ventura Ca or Dr Fred Lee in Rochester Mi.
