How Common Is Prostate Cancer And Who Is At Risk
Prostate cancer most often affects men between ages 55 and 69. There is a huge gap between the proportion of men diagnosed with prostate cancer and those whose health and lifespan are affected by the disease. American men have a 16 percent lifetime risk of developing prostate cancer, but only 2.9 percent of men die from it.
In fact, many prostate cancers are believed to be slow growing, with men dying from causes other than prostate cancer. Autopsy studies support this, finding that 30 percent of 55-year-old men and 60 percent of men reaching age 80 on whom an autopsy is performed have autopsy-discovered prostate cancer.
There are some factors that increase risk for prostate cancer, including:
Race Race seems to play a role in the frequency and severity of the disease. African-American men are far more likely to develop prostate cancer than white men 203.5 vs. 121.9 cases per 100,000 men. They are also more than twice as likely as white men to die of prostate cancer 44.1 vs. 19.1 deaths per 100,000 men.
Family History Positive family history of prostate cancer is another risk factor.
Elevated Body Mass Index Elevated BMI is another risk factor, linked to an increased risk of prostate-cancer-specific mortality and biochemical recurrence in men with prostate cancer.
Warning Signs Of Prostate Cancer
One of the challenges of prostate cancer is that it often doesnt present symptoms that alert men to its presence, particularly in the early stages. But the Urology Care Foundation notes that there may be some warning signs that you have problems related to your prostate, including the following:
If you get screened for prostate cancer, there are additional warning signs based on how the prostate gland cells look under a microscope, notes the American Cancer Society. Cells that may be concerning will exhibit some level of what is known as prostatic intraepithelial neoplasia . These cells may exhibit low-grade PIN, in which something is slightly off with the cells, or high-grade PIN, when they show clear abnormalities.
Under a microscope, prostate gland cells may also exhibit what is known as proliferative inflammatory atrophy . PIA indicates cells that are smaller than normal and show some signs of inflammation. These cells may be worth additional monitoring because they could develop high-grade PIN and ultimately prostate cancer.
Us Preventive Services Task Force Issues New Prostate Cancer Screening Guidelines
Prostate cancer is usually though not always a very slow-growing cancer that takes a long time to start affecting the body.
Most often, it only causes symptoms when it grows to pinch the urethra or invade the sphincter or other body parts.
In fact, some men with prostate cancer don’t show any signs or symptoms of their illness, the CDC notes.
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Risk Factors For Prostate Cancer
Because prostate cancer tends to not show symptoms in its early stages, risk factors are another useful tool to identify candidates for screening. The Mayo Clinic notes that risk certainly increases as you grow older, and obese men may be more likely to have prostate cancer that is aggressive or difficult to treat.
For unknown reasons, black men are also at a greater risk of prostate cancer than men of other races. Not only are they more likely to get prostate cancer, but the risk of prostate cancer being aggressive or advanced is also higher.
Finally, your family history or genetics can also help determine your prostate cancer risk. For example, men with close relatives who had prostate cancer are more likely to get it. Also, a family history of breast cancer or the presence of the genes BRCA1 or BRCA2 within the family also raises the likelihood of a man developing prostate cancer.
Surgery For Aggressive Prostate Cancer Gives 92% 10
Patients with the most aggressive form of prostate cancer who have surgery radical prostatectomy were found to have a 10-year cancer-specific survival rate of 92%, which is high, and a 77% overall survival rate, according to researchers from the Fox Chase Cancer Center and the Mayo Clinic, USA. This compares to an 88% 10-year cancer specific survival rate and 52% overall survival rate for those who underwent radiotherapy without surgery. The findings were presented at the American Urological Associations 84th Annual Meeting, Chicago.
Stephen Boorjian, M.D., a urologist at the Mayo Clinic, said:
Its long been believed that patients with aggressive prostate cancer are not candidates for surgery. We found that surgery does provide excellent long-term cancer control for this type of prostate cancer. In addition, by allowing the targeted use of secondary therapies such as androgen deprivation, surgery offers the opportunity to avoid or at least delay the potentially adverse health consequences of these treatments.
Their study included 1,847 individuals with aggressive prostate cancer. Between 1988 and 2004 1,238 of them underwent a surgical procedure to have their prostate taken out at the Mayo Clinic, while 609 received radiotherapy at the Fox Chase Cancer Center. 344 of the patients who received radiotherapy were also given androgen deprivation therapy.
The investigators worked out their overall and cancer-specific survival rates:
Dr. Boorjian said:
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What Is The Prognosis For People Who Have Prostate Cancer
Because prostate cancer tends to grow slowly, most men die from something other than the disease. Early detection is key to better outcomes. Almost all men 97% to 98% diagnosed with localized cancer that hasnt spread outside of the prostate live at least five years after diagnosis. When metastatic cancer has spread outside of the gland, one-third of men continue to survive after five years.
Favorite Apps Products And Gadgets
With a simple tap, youll receive information about personalized prostate cancer treatment options to help manage your care. This free app includes questions to ask your doc, calendars to keep track of your appointments, and videos that highlight helpful resources. Downloading it is a great way to stay on top of your cancer!
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Advanced And Metastatic Prostate Cancer What Is It
02 October 2020
Prostate cancer is the most commonly diagnosed cancer in Australian men, with about 17,000 men newly diagnosed each year. For most men the long-term outlook is very good – relative to the general population and considering other causes of death, 95% of men with prostate cancer will survive at least five years after diagnosis and 91% of men with prostate cancer will survive 10 years or more. Today there are around 220,000 Australian men alive after a diagnosis of prostate cancer.
Of concern to our mission, for men who develop advanced prostate cancer, the outlook is not as good. Prostate cancer kills more than 3,000 men in Australia every year, representing about 12% of all male deaths from cancer. So, what is advanced prostate cancer, how is it detected and how is it treated?
What is the prostate?
The prostate is a small gland located below the bladder and in front of the rectum in men. It surrounds the urethra, the passage that leads from the bladder, out through the penis through which urine and semen pass out of the body. The prostate gland is part of the male reproductive system .
The prostate produces some of the fluid that makes up semen, which enriches and protects sperm. The prostate needs the male hormone testosterone to grow and develop. Testosterone is made by the testicles.
What is prostate cancer?
Diagnosing advanced and metastatic prostate cancer
Further tests to determine where the cancer has spread to and the size of the cancers include:
Causes Of Advanced Prostate Cancer
Prostate cancer is the most common cancer in men in the UK. It is more common over the age 65. Although it can happen at a younger age it is uncommon under 50. People who have a prostate include men, transwomen and people assigned male at birth. If you are a trans woman and have had genital gender affirming surgery as part of your transition, you still have a prostate. Trans men do not have a prostate. It is important to talk to your GP or nurse if you are worried about prostate cancer or have symptoms.
We have more information about the risk factors of prostate cancer.
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Prostate Cancer: Psa Tests And Diagnosis
Though most cases of prostate cancer have a good prognosis, the disease is the second leading cause of cancer deaths in American men, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention .
As with other cancers, early detection and treatment may be important for surviving prostate cancer, at least for advanced forms of the disease.
Prostate Cancer Symptoms Explained As Joe Exotic Says He Has Aggressive Form Of Disease
Joseph Maldonado, better known as Joe Exotic, has been diagnosed with an aggressive form of prostate cancer, according to a letter written by the Tiger King figure.
A letter provided to CNN by his attorney John M. Phillips, Maldonadowho rose to fame in the 2020 Netflix documentary series Tiger King: Murder, Mayhem, and Madnesssaid a prostate biopsy had been returned with the diagnosis of aggressive cancer.
The tiger enthusiast, convicted in 2019 on animal abuse charges and for his role in a plot to murder longstanding rival animal rights activist Carole Baskin, added: “I am still waiting on the results from other tests as well. Right now, I don’t want anyone’s pity.”
His attorney told CNN: “The PSA test is a blood test used primarily to screen for prostate cancer. It was high. He finally obtained biopsies. They revealed cancer. Medical care is different in a prison environment and fewer options are available.”
According to the American Cancer Society, aside from skin cancer, prostate cancer is the second most common form of cancer in American men, 1 in 8 men will be diagnosed with the condition.
Prostate cancer is also the second-leading cause of death in American men after lung cancer, with estimates suggesting that 1 in 41 men in the U.S. will die as a result of the condition.
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How Is Advanced Prostate Cancer Diagnosed
If youve previously been diagnosed with prostate cancer, be sure to tell your doctor if you have any new symptoms, even if youve completed treatment.
To determine if prostate cancer has returned or has spread, your doctor will likely order some imaging tests, which may include:
- X-rays
- PET scans
- bone scans
You probably wont need all of these tests. Your doctor will choose the tests based on your symptoms and physical exam.
If any of the images reveal abnormalities, it doesnt necessarily mean that you have cancer. Additional testing may be necessary. If they find a mass, your doctor will probably order a biopsy.
For a biopsy, your doctor will use a needle to remove samples from the suspicious area. A pathologist will then analyze the removed cells under a microscope to see if theyre cancerous. The pathologist can also determine if you have an aggressive form of prostate cancer.
The Controversy About Using Psa For Prostate Cancer Screening
A delayed diagnosis of prostate cancer increases the chance of cancer spreading. How then, can anyone be opposed to PSA screening? Can an early diagnosis of cancer be bad? Surprisingly, experience has shown PSA is actually over-sensitive, leading to the unnecessary diagnosis of 100,000 men annually who have such harmless early-stage cancers that they are at practically zero risk for it spreading.
This would not be a problem if the medical system was prepared to simply monitor these harmless cancers. Unfortunately, due to these tiny specks of disease being called cancer, doctors and patients alike overreact and rush into unnecessary radical treatment, risking terrible problems with sexual and urinary function.
In fact, over-treatment of harmless prostate cancer has become such a gargantuan problem that in 2011, a government-sponsored team of experts, the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force, issued a dire warning recommending that routine PSA screening should cease. This task force concluded that the terrible cost of so many men being harmed by unnecessary treatment outweighed the benefit of lives saved by early detection. Many primary care physicians have taken this government recommendation to heart and have decided to forgo routine annual PSA screening since they believe it is causing more harm than good.
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To Treat Or Not To Treat
Up until now, with a few notable exceptions, doctors have myopically focused on treating prostate cancer, says Adami. They are willing to spend tens of thousands of dollars on chemotherapy that has minimal effects on cancer mortality, often with substantial side effects. But we ignore entirely the fact that large groups of prostate cancer patients die from other causes that actually are preventable.
Among older patients especially, that activity can take the form of vigorous walking. Recently, Mucci has spearheaded an intervention with Adami and other colleagues in Sweden, Iceland, and Ireland in which men walk in groups with a nurse three times a week. In a pilot study, researchers found improvements in just 12 weeks in body weight, blood pressure, sleep, urinary function, and mental health.
Scientists at HSPH are also searching for genetic and lifestyle markers that help predict how aggressive a patients prostate cancer will be. For example, an ongoing project led by Mucci and Adami draws on detailed cancer registries in Nordic countries, including an analysis of 300,000 twins, to tease out the relative contribution of different genes to prostate cancer incidence and survival.
is a Boston-based journalist and author of The Coke Machine: The Dirty Truth Behind the Worlds Favorite Soft Drink.
For Many Men Diagnosed With Prostate Cancer The Treatment May Be Worse Than The Disease
To screen or not to screen? For prostate cancerthe second leading cause of cancer deaths in men, after lung cancerthat is the bedeviling question.
The dilemma springs the wide variation in the potential of prostate cancers to spread to the rest of the body. The vast majority of these malignancies, especially those discovered with the extensively used prostate-specific antigen, or PSA, test, are slow-growing tumors that are unlikely to cause a man any harm during his lifetime. Yet in 10 to 15 percent of cases, the cancer is aggressive and advances beyond the prostate, sometimes turning lethal.
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Prostate Cancer Is Slow
Sometimes. Other times, prostate cancer spreads quickly and can kill. And it’s hard to predict what a man’s cancer will do.
Because experts can’t always tell if a man’s cancer will be aggressive, many men who are diagnosed face a difficult choice: a treatment that might not be needed and could leave them with life-changing side effects, or to watch and wait and hope the cancer doesn’t spread and need treatment. And men often have to make a choice between other treatments, which each have different pros and cons.
Our Specialist Nurses support men facing tough treatment decisions, and we produce award-winning health information to help them navigate complex medical issues.
You can help us be there for men when they need support by volunteering, donating, or marching with us.
Psa And Prostate Cancer Staging
Prostate cancer stages run from 1 to 4, with 4 being the most advanced stage and 1 being the least advanced stage. PSA levels can help doctors to determine the stage of prostate cancer, as follows:
- Stage 1: The cancer is limited to one half of the prostate and has not spread to other tissues. PSA levels are below 10.
- Stage 2A: The cancer is limited to one half of the prostate and has not spread. PSA levels are between 10 and 20.
- Stage 2B: The cancer has affected both sides of the prostate, PSA levels are greater than 20, or both.
- Stages 3 and 4: The cancer has spread to other tissues. The extent to which this has occurred determines the stage. PSA levels are no longer considered.
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Stage 1 Prostate Cancer Symptoms
As stage 1 prostate cancer is confined to the prostate, any symptoms would affect this area of the body. However, stage 1 prostate cancer cannot be detected by physical examination and cancer cells within the prostate gland are limited in number. Because of this, a patient with first stage prostate cancer often has no noticeable symptoms. There have not been significant physical changes within the body to cause problems.
See also, ‘Symptoms Of Prostate Cancer‘.
What Are The Symptoms Of Prostate Cancer
Early-stage prostate cancer rarely causes symptoms. These problems may occur as the disease progresses:
- Frequent, sometimes urgent, need to urinate, especially at night.
- Weak urine flow or flow that starts and stops.
- Painful urination .
- Painful ejaculation and erectile dysfunction .
- Blood in semen or urine.
- Lower back pain, hip pain and chest pain.
- Leg or feet numbness.
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Stage 4 Prostate Cancer: Symptoms And Treatment
Prostate cancer is a common ailment in older adults. It is currently the most commonly diagnosed cancer type in males. It is also the second cause of cancer-related death in males.
But not all types of prostate cancer are dangerous, and only aggressive cancer leads to advanced disease.
Every step in the clinical management of prostate cancer is complex and highly variable. From screening to watchful waiting and advanced prostate cancer management, almost everything related to this disease is currently not carved in stone. New advances and statistics contribute to advancing our understanding of the disease. Thus, management guidelines are always subject to change.
In this article, were reviewing the state-of-art in advanced prostate cancer management. Stage 4 prostate cancer causes a variety of health problems and complications. Thus, it is essential to identify and understand the disease to prevent late-stage cancer in high-risk patients.
In this article, were reviewing the state-of-art in advanced prostate cancer management. Stage 4 prostate cancer causes a variety of health problems and complications. Thus, it is essential to identify and understand the disease to prevent late-stage cancer in high-risk patients.