What Men Should Know About Prostate Cancer
Prostate cancer develops mostly in men over fifty. This type of cancer can occur only in men, as the prostate is the exclusive domain of the man's reproductive tract. It is the most common type of cancer in men in the United States, where it is responsible for more male deaths than any other type of cancer, with the exception of lung cancer. However, many men who develop prostate cancer may never have any symptoms, undergo any therapy, and eventually will die of some other cause. Many factors, including genetics and diet, have been implied in the development of prostate cancer. Prostate cancer is a disease in which Men may develope cancer of the prostate, a gland in the male reproductive system. It may occur when cells of the prostate mutate and thus begin to multiply out of control. These cells may spread from the prostate to other parts of the body, especially the bones and lymph nodes. Prostate cancer may cause pain, difficulty in urinating, erectile dysfunction and /or other symptoms. The main difficulty with urinating is that your stream becomes gradually weaker. You may also notice that younger children have a stronger urine stream, which is because of their strong Prostate. Thus, Prostate cancer just gradually weakens the stream even more. Rates of prostate cancer vary widely across the world. Although the rates vary widely between countries, it is least common in South and East Asia, more common in Europe, and most common in the Western World. According to the American Cancer Society, prostate cancer is least common among Asian men and most common among black men, with figures for white men somewhere in-between. However, these high rates may be affected by increasing rates of detection or just Diet. Prostate cancer is most often discovered by physical examination or by screening blood tests, like the PSA (prostate specific antigen) test. It is probably the easiest test to get most Men to undertake, as the sampling can take only a few minutes of time. However, there is some current concern about the resultant accuracy of the PSA test and its usefulness. Suspected prostate cancer is typically confirmed by a biopsy and examining it under a microscope. Other tests, such as X-rays and bone scans, may also be performed, to determine whether any prostate cancer has spread. Prostate cancer can be treated with surgery, radiation therapy, or hormonal therapy. The age and underlying health of the man as well as the extent of spread, or appearance under the microscope, and response of the cancer to initial treatment are a important factor in determining the outcome of the disease. Since prostate cancer is a disease of older men, many will die of other causes before a slowly advancing prostate cancer can spread or cause symptoms. This does makes treatment selection difficult.
In summary, though, it is still probably a good idea to get a PSA test, just in case ......
Like I just did.
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