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3 Signs Of Prostate Cancer

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What Are The Symptoms Of Prostate Cancer

10 Warning Signs of Prostate Cancer

If you have any symptoms that worry you, be sure to see your doctor right away. They may be caused by conditions other than prostate cancer.

Different people have different symptoms for prostate cancer. Some men do not have symptoms at all.

If you have any of the following symptoms, be sure to see your doctor right away

  • Difficulty starting urination.
  • Weak or interrupted flow of urine.
  • Urinating often, especially at night.
  • Trouble emptying the bladder completely.
  • Pain or burning during urination.
  • Pain in the back, hips, or pelvis that doesnt go away.

Keep in mind that these symptoms may be caused by conditions other than prostate cancer.

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Soreness In The Groin

When prostate cancer spreads, its common for cancer cells to go to your lymph nodes and then move to more areas of your body. The lymph nodes are a network of glands that help your body filter fluids and fight infections.

There are several lymph nodes in your groin. These are the ones closest to your prostate, so its common for the cancer to spread to them first. Cancer cells prevent your lymph nodes from draining fluid and working properly. When this happens, your lymph nodes swell. As a result, you might experience pain or soreness in the area.

Advanced Prostate Cancer Symptoms

Men with advanced prostate cancer may experience additional symptoms. Thats because the cancer has spread from the prostate to other parts of the body, such as the bones or lymph nodes.

Signs of metastatic prostate cancer may include:

  • Swelling in legs or pelvic area
  • Numbness or pain in the hips, legs or feet
  • Bone pain that persists or leads to fractures

A wide range of treatment options are available for managing advanced cancer. These treatments kill cancer cells, but they may also help patients manage pain.

Prostate cancer treatment: The care you need is one call away

Your multidisciplinary team will work with you to develop a personalized plan to treat your prostate cancer in a way that fits your individual needs and goals.

Also Check: Can Prostate Problems Cause Burning Urination

Prostate Cancer Warning Signs And Symptoms

About 85% of prostate cancers are detected in men during their early, asymptomatic stages. These can be revealed in elevated prostate-specific antigen levels or abnormalities in a rectal exam.

That said, the longer you let prostate cancer run its course untreated, the harder it will become to treat and the more life-threatening it will become. This is why many doctors strongly urge men, especially those older than 50, to get examined annually to check for any abnormalities in their prostate.

If you experience any of the following prostate cancer symptoms, consult with a medical professional right away.

Current Psa Screening Recommendations

Prostate Cancer: Symptoms &  Signs : Infographics

PSA-based screening refers to testing healthy men without symptoms.

Until recently, physician societies disagreed on screening recommendations, but with the publication of the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force Guideline in May 2018, all the major physician groups are broadly in agreement, including the American College of Physicians , the American Cancer Society , American Urological Association , and American Society of Clinical Oncology :

  • They advise supporting men so that they make informed decisions about screening that reflect their personal preferences and values.
  • Routine screening is not recommended in men between ages 40 and 54 of average risk.
  • For men ages 55 to 69 years, the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force concluded with moderate certainty that the net benefit of PSA-based screening is small for some men, making the decision up to the judgment of the physician and the values of the patient.”
  • For men 70 years and older, they recommend against routine screening because the expected harms are thought to outweigh the benefits.
  • Your doctor should not screen you unless you express a preference for it.
  • A discussion of the benefits and harms of screening should include a family history of prostate cancer, race or ethnicity, any medical conditions that affect your overall health and lifespan, and your values about risk and benefit.
  • If you have less than a 10-year life expectancy, screening is not recommended.

Read Also: Can Prostate Cancer Cause Memory Problems

Clues In Diet And Lifestyle

To clarify the prognosis for a tumor, HSPH researchers are homing in on other factors that might affect susceptibility to prostate cancer, especially the aggressive form of the disease. Edward Giovannucci, professor of nutrition and epidemiology, recently looked at nine diet and lifestyle factors. He found that smoking, obesity, and lack of physical activity raise the risk of developing a more virulent cancer. According to Giovannucci, The question is whether there are two types of prostate canceran aggressive and nonaggressive formor whether certain factors cause a nonaggressive form to become more aggressive. Evidence provided by HSPH researchers suggests that an increase in insulin in the bloodstream, caused by obesity and physical inactivity, may encourage tumor growth.

Other investigations have linked dietary factors to the disease. A 2011 study by HSPH research associate Kathryn Wilson, together with Mucci and Giovannucci, professor of nutrition and epidemiology Meir Stampfer, and other colleagues, found that men who drank coffee had a notably lower risk of aggressive prostate cancer. Those who consumed six cups or more a day were 20 percent less likely to develop any form of the disease, and 60 percent less likely to develop a lethal disease those who consumed one to three cups a day showed no difference in developing any form of the disease, but had a 30 percent lower risk of developing a lethal form.

Prostate Cancer Screening Tests

Prostate cancer screening tests are preventive health screenings you can get through your doctor or at community screenings. These medical screenings are important because early detection by way of preventive screening of cancer can significantly increase your chances of survival. Additionally, prostate cancer does not always have early warning signs, making the screenings even more important.

Roughly one of out nine men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer at some point during their lifetime. If you notice any of these signs and symptoms listed above, or even if you dont, its time to think about prostate cancer screening tests. Talk to your doctor about your risk.

Also Check: Does Having Sex Help An Enlarged Prostate

Signs Of Dying From Cancer

Cancer is one of the leading causes of death in the United States. Although mortality rates are dropping, cancer is common enough that most people in the United States know someone who has had cancer in their lifetime.

However, not as much is known about the end-of-life signs of cancer, and what one should expect at the end. Furthermore, many are unaware of the ways in which hospice can help patients in dealing with the stages of death from cancer.

Christopher Mabary

Prostate cancer is a malignant tumor which generally affects men older than the age of 50. The tumor develops inside the gland located just below the bladder, called the prostate gland. The disease has its own specific course and goes through a distinct stages.

The rate and nature of the progression of prostate cancer is individual and the first symptoms occur when the tumor becomes large enough to initiate compression or infiltrate nearby organs and tissues. Prostate cancer can be also diagnosed accidentally, when the man has a medical checkup for unrelated reasons and the tumor is found over the course of this treatment.

Unfortunately, prostate cancer may remain asymptomatic for a long period of time. In such cases it is diagnosed late, when it has already resulted in bone metastases.

What Is the Life Expectancy for Patients with Prostate Cancer?

Cancer May Spread From Where It Began To Other Parts Of The Body

3 Signs Of Prostate Cancer You Should Never Ignore

When cancer spreads to another part of the body, it is called metastasis. Cancer cells break away from where they began and travel through the lymph system or blood.

  • Lymph system. The cancer gets into the lymph system, travels through the lymph vessels, and forms a tumor in another part of the body.
  • Blood. The cancer gets into the blood, travels through the blood vessels, and forms a tumor in another part of the body.

The metastatic tumor is the same type of cancer as the primary tumor. For example, if prostate cancer spreads to the bone, the cancer cells in the bone are actually prostate cancer cells. The disease is metastatic prostate cancer, not bone cancer.

Denosumab, a monoclonal antibody, may be used to preventbone metastases.

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No Symptoms In Early Stages

The problem is, early stage prostate cancer is a silent lurker with no symptoms. However, a growing tumor will eventually cause symptoms. Since many noncancerous conditions like infection or normal age-related prostate enlargement can cause similar symptoms, only a doctor can tell the difference.

Here are 10 prostate cancer warning signs you should pay attention to. To help you remember them, I have divided them into three categories: urinary function, sexual function, and pain.

Prostate Cancer Treatment Options: What Are They

Prostate cancer is, most often, a slow-growing cancer.

For some men, prostate cancer causes no symptoms or long-term issues, so treatment isn’t necessary.

In these cases, doctors may recommend active surveillance. That is, they’ll keep an eye on the development of the tumor using various tools and tests, including:

  • Digital rectal exams
  • Transrectal ultrasounds
  • Prostate biopsies

Men who require treatment for their condition are most often treated with surgery, radiation therapy, hormone therapy, or a combination of these modalities.

Read Also: How Long Does It Take To Recover From Prostate Surgery

A Biopsy Is Done To Diagnose Prostate Cancer And Find Out The Grade Of The Cancer

A transrectal biopsy is used to diagnose prostate cancer. A transrectal biopsy is the removal of tissue from the prostate by inserting a thin needle through the rectum and into the prostate. This procedure may be done using transrectal ultrasound or transrectal MRI to help guide where samples of tissue are taken from. A pathologist views the tissue under a microscope to look for cancer cells.

Sometimes a biopsy is done using a sample of tissue that was removed during a transurethral resection of the prostate to treat benign prostatic hyperplasia.

If cancer is found, the pathologist will give the cancer a grade. The grade of the cancer describes how abnormal the cancer cells look under a microscope and how quickly the cancer is likely to grow and spread. The grade of the cancer is called the Gleason score.

To give the cancer a grade, the pathologist checks the prostate tissue samples to see how much the tumor tissue is like the normal prostate tissue and to find the two main cell patterns. The primary pattern describes the most common tissue pattern, and the secondary pattern describes the next most common pattern. Each pattern is given a grade from 3 to 5, with grade 3 looking the most like normal prostate tissue and grade 5 looking the most abnormal. The two grades are then added to get a Gleason score.

What Will Happen In The Last Weeks Days And Months

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Every man will have a different experience at the end of his life.The burden of cancer on the body can cause a number of symptoms. Bone marrow may not be able to make enough red blood cells, which can cause anaemia. Cancer can affect your ability to get energy from food, which can make you feel weak. Sometimes organs, like the kidney and liver may not work so well, which can mean you get a build up of waste products in your blood. In the later stages of the disease you may feel drowsy and drift in and out of consciousness.However, its important to know that you may not experience all or any of these effects. And if you do, there are things your medical team could do to help relieve symptoms and make you comfortable.Macmillan Cancer Support and also provide information about what will happen in the last few weeks and days of life.

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What Increases Your Risk Of Prostate Cancer

Factors that can elevate risk prostate cancer include:

  • A family history of prostate cancer
  • Inherited genetic mutations, such as BRCA1/BRCA2 genes and Lynch syndrome
  • Conditions such as prostatitis, inflammation of the prostate, and benign prostatic hyperplasia or BPH, a noncancerous enlargement of the prostate gland
  • A diet high in red meats and high-fat dairy and low in fruits and vegetables
  • Age: approximately 60 percent of cases are diagnosed in men older than 65
  • Race and ethnicity: African-American men and Caribbean men of African ancestry are more likely to be diagnosed with prostate cancer

Research has also shown that a healthy lifestyle, including a well-balanced diet and maintaining a healthy weight, may reduce prostate cancer risk.

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So What Are The Warning Signs Of Prostate Cancer

Unfortunately, there usually arent any early warning signs for prostate cancer. The growing tumor does not push against anything to cause pain, so for many years the disease may be silent. Thats why screening for prostate cancer is such an important topic for all men and their families.

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In rare cases, prostate cancer can cause symptoms. Contact your doctor for an evaluation if you experience any of the following:

  • A need to urinate frequently, especially at night, some- times urgently
  • Difficulty starting or holding back urination
  • Weak, dribbling, or interrupted flow of urine
  • Painful or burning urination
  • Difficulty in having an erection
  • A decrease in the amount of fluid ejaculated
  • Pressure or pain in the rectum
  • Pain or stiffness in the lower back, hips, pelvis, or thighs

Remember: urinary symptoms dont necessarily mean you have cancer. Prostatitis or BPH are benign diseases but can cause similar symptoms and are very common.

What about difficulty in having an erection? Again, this is most likely not caused by cancer but by other factors such as diabetes, smoking, cardiovascular disease, or just plain getting older.

That said: Symptoms are symptoms, and no matter whats most likely to be causing them, you should get them checked out by a doctor.

Download or order your free copy of the Prostate Cancer Patient Guide now with COVID-19 Appendix.

Also Check: What Does Stage 7 Prostate Cancer Mean

Should I Have A Psa Test

Because the results of the PSA test are not as reliable as doctors would like, other tests and investigations are needed to diagnose prostate cancer.

A PSA test cannot identify prostate cancer on its own, and changes in PSA levels alone are not a good reason to start treatment.

If you are thinking about asking for a PSA test, it is important that you first discuss whether it is right for you with your GP so you understand what the results might mean.

The Prostate Cancer Risk Management Programme has information on the risks and benefits of the PSA test to help you decide whether or not to have it.

Should You Get A Psa Test

What are the Signs and Symptoms of Prostate Cancer? | Cancer Research UK

The PSA test has come under fire because of concerns that it has led to over diagnosis and overtreatment. In 2013, the American Urological Association released new PSA screening guidelines for men based on their age, health, and risk profile.

A protein made by the prostate gland and found in the blood. Prostate-specific antigen blood levels may be higher than normal in men who have prostate cancer, benign prostatic hyperplasia , or infection or inflammation of the prostate gland.

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Finding Out If The Cancer Has Spread

To find out if cancer has spread outside of the prostate, doctors may perform the imaging tests listed below. Doctors are able to estimate the risk of spread, called metastasis, based on PSA levels, tumor grade, and other factors, but an imaging test can confirm and provide information about the cancers location.

Imaging tests may not always be needed. A CT scan or bone scan may not be necessary for those with no symptoms and low-risk, early-stage prostate cancer, as determined with information from the PSA test and biopsy. Learn more about when these tests are recommended to find out if the cancer has spread.

For people with advanced prostate cancer, ASCO recommends that 1 or more of the imaging tests below be done to provide more information about the disease and help plan the best treatment. This includes when there is a newly diagnosed, high-risk cancer if metastasis is suspected or confirmed if the cancer has returned following treatment or when the cancer grows during the treatment period. Learn more about this guideline on the ASCO website.

Magnetic resonance imaging . An MRI scan uses magnetic fields, not x-rays, to produce detailed images of the body. An MRI can be used to measure the tumors size, and a scan can focus specifically on the area of the prostate or on the whole body. A special dye called contrast medium is given before the scan to create a clearer picture, which is injected into a patients vein.

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