It is becoming common among men to complain of urine-related difficulties. Just as breast cancer is a nightmare to women, prostate cancer is fast becoming a terror within the male population. Friends have stylishly or sometimes innocently said things such as: these days, I wake up more frequently to empty my bladder or I pass urine more often these days. Just as we advised when we treated breast cancer, feel free to see medical enquiry.
Your doctor can actually feel the prostate gland. However, an abnormal prostate on rectal examination does not necessarily indicate prostate cancer.
The Prostate
The prostate is a male sex gland located underneath the bladder. It is about the size of a walnut and fits around the tube (the urethra) which carries urine out of the bladder. The prostate produces a thick fluid that forms part of the semen.
Prostate Cancer
Prostate cancer differs from most other cancers in the body, because small areas of cancer within the prostate are very common and may stay dormant for many years.
In a small proportion of men, the prostate cancer does grow more quickly and in some cases may spread to other parts of the body, particularly the bones.
Signs and Symptoms
One of the problems related to prostate cancer is that, in its early stages, it often does not cause symptoms. Where symptoms do occur they may include any of the following problems:
· Having to rush to the toilet to pass urine
· Passing urine more often and/or at night
· Difficulty getting the flow of urine started
· Starting and stopping whilst passing urine
· Discomfort (pain or burning) whilst passing urine
· A feeling of not having emptied the bladder fully
· Dribbling of urine
· Blood in urine or semen
· Pain or stiffness in the back, hips or pelvis
The prostate enlarges as men get older, and most men have some symptoms affecting urination. These symptoms can be caused by other conditions that are less serious than prostate cancer, such as a non-cancerous enlarged prostate gland or a kidney infection.
However, it is vital that you do go and see your doctor as soon as possible if you are suffering from any of these symptoms so that the cause can be diagnosed and any relevant treatment administered.
Risk Factors:
*Age and prostate cancer
The majority of men with prostate cancer are aged over 60 years and the disease is very rare in men under 50.
*Family history
and prostate cancer
Men with a brother or
father who developed prostate cancer at a young age have an increased risk. Men with a family history of breast or ovarian cancer also have an increased risk. Scientists at the Everyman Centre have discovered more than 10 areas of the genome associated with an increased risk of prostate cancer. These genetic alterations can be inherited. Our researchers are working to develop a test which may lead to targeted screening for men with a family history of prostate cancer.
*Race and prostate cancer
Men of African descent are 60 per cent more likely to develop prostate cancer than the non-African population.
Men living in some Asian countries are about 10 times less likely to develop prostate cancer. However that reduced risk does not apply to men of Asian background who live outside of Asia.
*Environment and prostate cancer
Possible risk factors include obesity, high fat consumption and low green vegetable consumption as well as exposure to radioactive substances.
In most cases, we simply do not know what causes prostate cancer or how to prevent it. Little is known about the detailed or molecular mechanism of prostate cancer development.
Diagnosis
The following tests will not, by themselves, be a conclusive indicator of prostate cancer. Your doctor is likely to use more than one test to determine whether or not you are affected by prostate cancer.
Everyman is carrying out further research to find a more efficient, comprehensive test for prostate cancer – as an early diagnosis is so important to successful treatment.
Rectal Examination
Your doctor can actually feel the prostate gland. However, an abnormal prostate on rectal examination does not necessarily indicate prostate cancer.
PSA Blood Test
This tests the level of ‘Prostate Specific Antigen’ in the blood. A high reading suggests prostate cancer but could be caused by other conditions.
Biopsy
About eight to 10 tiny samples of tissue from the prostate are taken using a probe sound wave scan which is inserted into the back passage, and the tissue is then analyzed under the microscope.
Bone Scan
This can be undertaken
to determine whether there is any cancer that has spread to the bones. It involves an injection of a tracer substance and a scan outside the body to look at the uptake of the tracer into the bones
Treatment
There are currently four main options:
Surgery
The entire prostate gland is removed in an operation called a ‘prostatectomy’.
Radiotherapy
High energy x-rays are used to destroy the prostate cancer cells.
Brachytherapy
A treatment where radioactive ‘seeds’ are implanted directly into the tumour.
Hormone treatment
Drugs can be used to lower the level of testosterone in the blood, which has the effect of slowing or stopping the growth of the cancerous prostate tumour. However, some prostate tumours develop the ability to grow without testosterone.
These treatments carry the risk of side-effects including incontinence and long-term impotence.
(With additional information from ‘Everyman’)
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