What Causes A Bad Urine Smell
Your food, vitamins, and medications are the most common cause of a bad urine smell.
Foods. Some foods have compounds that naturally have a strong odor and can make your urine smell. These include:
- Asparagus
- Onion
Vitamins. B vitamins are water soluble, which means your body doesnât store them, and whatever you donât need is removed in your urine. B vitamins in your multivitamin are often the culprit of smelly urine.
Medications. Some medicines like antibiotics can make your urine stink. Some antibiotics are made from mold and can make your urine smell yeasty.
Drinking lots of water throughout the day can help with these smells and keep your urine clear.
The Top 7 Signs Of Advanced Prostate Cancer
In the early stages, you may not notice any symptoms related to prostate cancer. This is why screenings are important. Symptoms can sometimes be noticed for the first time when the cancer advances.
Advanced prostate cancer, also called metastatic cancer, means the cancer has spread to other areas of your body beyond your prostate gland. The most common areas for prostate cancer to spread are your bladder, rectum, and bones. It can also spread to your lymph nodes, liver, lungs, and other body tissues.
Whether youve just been diagnosed or youre in treatment, its also important to know the signs of advanced cancer. Cancer can behave differently depending on your genetics, so not every person will experience the same symptoms in the same way.
Read on to learn more about the seven top symptoms of advanced prostate cancer and how to spot them.
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Volatile Compounds Unique To Prostate Cancer Urine
For their study, the team tested urine samples collected from 100 men who were undergoing prostate biopsies.
The researchers noted that some previous studies had experienced problems with chemical degradation. Thus, to better preserve the samples during analysis, they added sodium chloride and neutralized their pH.
Using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry to analyze the volatile organic compounds in the air above the urine samples, the team found a set of small molecules that appear to be unique to prostate cancer.
The molecules were present in 90 percent of samples from men who were subsequently found to have prostate cancer, but they were not present in samples from men who did not have it.
The researchers are already planning to validate their findings with a large-scale study involving several health centers. They also hope to compare their findings with results obtained from dogs, with the help of a local dog trainer.
They suggest, if these further tests confirm their findings, that their chemical sniff test will be available for clinical use within the next few years.
Currently, around 60 percent of men who have biopsies to detect prostate cancer do not need one, say the researchers.
We hope our research will help doctors and patients make better-informed decisions about whether to have a biopsy, and to avoid unwarranted procedures.
Dr. Amanda Siegel
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Prognosis For Prostate Cancer
It is not possible for a doctor to predict the exact course of a disease, as it will depend on each person’s individual circumstances. However, your doctor may give you a prognosis, the likely outcome of the disease, based on the type of prostate cancer you have, the test results, the rate of tumour growth, as well as your age, fitness and medical history.
Prostate cancer often grows slowly and even more aggressive types tend to grow more slowly than other types of cancer. If diagnosed early, prostate cancer has one of the highest five year survival rates.
What Should I Do If I Have Prostate Cancer Symptoms
If you are displaying one or more signs of prostate cancer, be sure to promptly consult with a physician. Even benign prostate conditions like prostate enlargement warrant timely medical attention, so dont delay seeking treatment. And, like most other malignancies, prostate cancer is usually more easily treated when it is detected at an early stage.
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Changes You Shouldnt Ignore
Early-stage prostate cancer rarely causes symptoms but as the disease progresses, you may experience certain warning signs. Knowing the signs of prostate cancer will help you keep an eye out for any concerning changes to your health.
Keep in mind, though, these symptoms dont indicate trouble with your prostate, Dr. Weight says. In fact, almost all of them come standard with aging. But if you experience several symptoms or have other concerns, it may be a good idea to visit a urologist.
See Your Doctor If You Have Symptoms
If you cant urinate at all, you should get medical help right away. Sometimes this problem happens suddenly to men after they take certain cold or allergy medicines.
You should see your doctor if you have one or more of these symptoms:
- a weak urine stream
- unable to empty your bladder completely
- urinating eight or more times a day
- urine that has an unusual color or smell
- waking often to urinate when you sleep
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Your Gp Practice Nurse And District Nurse
Your GP, practice nurse, and district or community nurse will work with other health professionals to co-ordinate your care and offer you support and advice. They can also refer you to local services. They can visit you in your home and also help support your family. They might also care for you if you go into a nursing home or hospice.
Problems After Prostate Cancer Treatment
Many men get urinary problems as a side effect of their treatment. This is because prostate cancer treatment can damage the nerves and muscles that control when you urinate .
If youre starting treatment for prostate cancer, ask your doctor about the possible side effects. Each treatment can cause different urinary problems. Your chances of getting each side effect will depend on the treatment youre having, and on whether or not you had urinary problems before starting treatment.
If youve already had prostate cancer treatment and you have urinary problems, tell your doctor or nurse. They can suggest treatments and lifestyle changes to help manage them.
Depending on the type of problems youre having, ways to manage them can include lifestyle changes, pelvic floor muscle exercises, bladder retraining, medicines or surgery. For practical tips read our How to manage urinary problems guide.
Watch Paul’s story below for one man’s experience of managing urinary problems after prostate cancer treatment.
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What Does It Mean If Your Urine Smells Like Ammonia
Ammonia is another smell which can be present when peeing, and can be a symptom of an underlying health problem.
Urine which smells like ammonia will have a strong chemical smell, and it is caused by a concentration of the waste product urea.
Some causes for these include bladder stones, a UTI or dehydration.
What Is Prostate Cancer
Prostate cancer develops when abnormal cells in the prostate gland grow in an uncontrolled way, forming a malignant tumour.
Prostate cancer is the second most common cancer diagnosed in men in Australia and the third most common cause of cancer death. It is estimated that 18,110 new cases of prostate cancer will be diagnosed in Australia in 2021. One in 6 men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer by the age of 85. It is more common in older men, with over 63% of cases diagnosed in men over 65 years of age.
Early prostate cancer refers to cancer cells that have grown but do not appear to have spread beyond the prostate.
There are two stages of advanced prostate cancer:
- locally advanced prostate cancer where the cancer has spread outside the prostate to nearby parts of the body or glands close to the prostate
- metastatic prostate cancer where the cancer has spread to distant parts of the body.
The five year survival rate for prostate cancer is 95%.
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Urine Therapy: Is Drinking Your Own Pee Good For You
Urine therapy, or urotherapy, is a type of alternative medicine in which people use or ingest their own urine for medicinal purposes. But there is no scientific evidence that urine therapy provides medicinal value.
When you drink urine, you ingest all the waste that your kidneys have filtered out of your body. Therefore, drinking urine can make your urine more concentrated with waste, causing dehydration and kidney damage. So drinking your urine is generally not recommended as a survival technique.
Scheduling Appointments For Blood In Urine Treatment At New York Urology Specialists
We have excellent reviews from patients and their partners. Information for out-of-state and international patients. Find out our office hours or directions to our office.
We offer affordable appointment prices with or without insurance. Same-day virtual video appointments and in-person appointments are available.
Dr. Shteynshlyuger MD is a board-certified urologist in NYC who specializes in treating urinary problems in men and women. He has performed hundreds of bladder, kidney, vaginal, and prostate surgeries.
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Management Of Urinary Problems By Prostate Cancer Patients
There are numerous treatment options for patients with prostate cancer, including expectant management or active surveillance, surgery, radiation therapy, cryosurgery , hormone therapy, chemotherapy, vaccine treatment, and bone-directed treatment. These are expected to ease the urinary symptoms, but there are other techniques that can help. Pelvic floor exercises, also known as Kegel exercises strengthen the pelvic muscles, while patients are recommended to avoid drinking more than 2 qt daily, alcohol drinks, coffee, tea, or soda pop, or a lot of liquids in the evening.
Patients may also benefit from scheduling urination every three or four hours while awake even if they dont feel need to. In the cases of patients who are unable to fully empty their bladder, patients may try a technique of double voiding by relaxing for a while and urinating again. Discomfort may be reduced by making a clearer and quicker path to the bathroom, as well as by wearing clothes easier to remove like elastic waistbands or Velcro closures, and by keeping a urinal close to the bed. Other recommendations that may improve the patients health include quit smoking, and having a healthy diet and weight.
Radiation Cystitis Causing Hematuria
Less common but challenging to treat is what we call radiation cystitis. This occurs in 1-2% of men after radiation treatment to the pelvis all the prostate. The bladder and the prostate become friable and bleed easily. Hematuria as a result of radiation cystitis typically occurs many years after treatment. A number of treatment options available, including fulguration, intravesical instillations, medical treatment. Hyperbaric oxygen treatment has been shown to be beneficial for men with persistent intermittent hematuria.
If you experience blood in urine before, after, or during treatment for prostate cancer, urological evaluation should be sought.
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Distinctive Odors And/or Volatile Profiles Associated With Diseases Are Present In Urine And Detected By Animals And Analytical Instruments
Animals can be trained to discriminate urinary odors of cancer patients from those of healthy control subjects. Dogs may detect the distinct odors in the urine samples collected from patients with bladder cancer as well as with prostate cancer,4,5 although the dogs employed by Gordon et al.6 did not recognize the urine odors of breast or prostate cancer patients. Mice could be trained to discriminate the urinary odors of tumor-bearing mice from those of genetically identical mice without tumors.7
A distinct VOC pattern of bladder cancer in urine has been detected by a gas sensor array coupled with a pattern recognition algorithm.8 Arasaradnam et al.9 also reported, in a preliminary communication, that an electronic nose could distinguish the volatile fingerprints in the urine samples of patients suffering from inflammatory bowel disease or diabetes from those of healthy volunteers.
Possible Cancer Protection From Prostate Drugs
Early research suggested that 5-alpha-reductase inhibitors , a class of drugs used to treat prostate enlargement, might increase the risk of developing more aggressive prostate cancer. However, newer studies have found that not only do the drugs appear to pose no extra risk, they may even protect against prostate cancer.
For instance, research from the Prostate Cancer Prevention Trial study in 2013 showed that taking the 5-ARI finasteride for seven years could lower the chance of getting low-grade prostate cancer by 25% among men ages 55 and older. A follow-up study of almost 9,500 men, published in the Nov. 1, 2018, issue of the Journal of the National Cancer Institute, also showed that finasteride lowered the risk by a similar amount , and found the protective effect lasted for at least 16 years.
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Other Professionals Who Can Help
Your doctor, nurse or GP can refer you to these professionals.
- Physiotherapists can help with mobility and provide exercises to help improve fitness or ease pain. This can help you stay independent for longer.
- Counsellors, psychologists or psychotherapists can help you and your family work through any difficult feelings and find ways of coping. Many hospitals have counsellors or psychologists who specialise in helping people with cancer. You can also get free counselling on the NHS without a referral from your GP. Visit nhs.uk/counselling to find out more.
- Dietitians can give you advice about healthy eating, which might help with fatigue and staying a healthy weight. They can also help if you are losing weight or having problems eating.
- Occupational therapists can provide advice and access to equipment and adaptations to help with daily life. For example, help with dressing, eating, bathing or using the stairs.
- Social services, including social workers, can provide practical and financial advice and access to emotional support. They can give you advice about practical issues such as arranging for someone to support you at home. Whats available varies from place to place. Your GP, hospital doctor or nurse might be able to refer you to some services. The telephone number for your local social service department will be in the phonebook under the name of your local authority, on their website and at the town hall.
When To See A Doctor
Bacterial or viral infections that affect your bladder, kidneys, or urethra can quickly develop into serious complications. Therefore, you shouldnt wait for long if your urine continues to smell like ammonia, rotten eggs, or have a musty aroma.
Dr. Minesh Khatri on WebMD recommends seeing a medical professional for odd-smelling urine in the following circumstances:24
- Your pee smells really bad and you have back pain or flank pain
- You have a constant thirst and your urine has a sweet aroma to it
- You have signs of smelly pee along with a fever and nausea or vomiting.
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Signs And Symptoms Of Prostate Cancer
Most prostate cancers are found early, through screening. Early prostate cancer usually causes no symptoms. More advanced prostate cancers can sometimes cause symptoms, such as:
- Problems urinating, including a slow or weak urinary stream or the need to urinate more often, especially at night
- Blood in the urine or semen
- Trouble getting an erection
- Pain in the hips, back , chest , or other areas from cancer that has spread to bones
- Weakness or numbness in the legs or feet, or even loss of bladder or bowel control from cancer pressing on the spinal cord
Most of these problems are more likely to be caused by something other than prostate cancer. For example, trouble urinating is much more often caused by benign prostatic hyperplasia , a non-cancerous growth of the prostate. Still, its important to tell your health care provider if you have any of these symptoms so that the cause can be found and treated, if needed. Some men might need more tests to check for prostate cancer.
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What Causes Urine To Be Cloudy
Cloudy urine can be an indication of a variety of medical conditions:
Dehydration Cloudy urine can indicate that you are not getting enough water and other fluids.
Urinary Tract Infection Blood, pus, or excess white blood cells can cause cloudy or milky urine and can indicate that you have a urinary tract infection.
Sexually Transmitted Infections STIs can produce an excess of white blood cells, which can cause cloudy urine.
Kidney Stones High levels of minerals in urine can cause cloudiness and be a sign of kidney stones.
Diabetes Cloudy urine can indicate that uncontrolled diabetes has damaged the kidneys.
Prostate Issues An inflamed or infected prostate can lead to an increase in the amount of white blood cells or other discharge, which can cloud urine.
Vaginitis A vaginal infection can increase the number of white blood cells released in urine and cause cloudiness.
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Can Cancer Treatments Cause An Odor
Dogs may be able to detect certain smells associated with cancer, but humans can detect some smells, too. Usually, those smells have less to do with cancer and more to do with the treatment for cancer.
Powerful chemotherapy drugs can give your urine a strong or unpleasant odor. It might be even worse if youre dehydrated. A foul odor and dark-colored urine could mean that you have a urinary tract infection .
Another side effect of chemotherapy is dry mouth. The powerful chemotherapy drugs can cause changes to cells on your gums, tongue, and the insides of your cheeks. This can cause mouth sores, bleeding gums, and tongue irritation. All of these things can lead to bad breath.
You may also develop bad breath from the nausea and vomiting associated with chemotherapy.
Ketones In Urine: When And Why To Test For Ketones In Urine
Ketones are chemicals that are produced when the body begins to burn fat instead of sugar. Ketones in urine are often a sign of poorly managed or uncontrolled diabetes, when there is insufficient insulin to carry sugar from blood to the cells that need it.
- Fruity-smelling breath
- Flushed skin
You can test for ketones in urine at home or at your doctors office via a dipstick test. People with diabetes are advised to test for ketones more frequently when their blood glucose level is high, or when they are sick with a cold or flu. If diabetes is left uncontrolled, people can develop diabetic ketoacidosis, which can lead to coma and even death.
High levels of ketones in urine can also be a sign of alcohol abuse, an eating disorder, chronic vomiting or diarrhea, or other medical conditions.
Treatment for ketones in urine typically involves treating the underlying issue.
Learn More About Testing for Ketones in Urine
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