Do All Men With Advanced Prostate Cancer Have Pain
No, not all men with advanced prostate cancer have pain. Men who do have pain experience different levels of pain. Pain is more common in men whose cancer has spread to their bones. If the cancer has spread to several places in your body, you might not get pain in all of these places.
With the right treatment and management, pain can usually be relieved or reduced. Tell your doctor or nurse if youre in pain or your pain relief isnt working well.
You Should Rule Out A Uti
If you have to pee frequently , you might have a urinary tract infection . The first thing we typically want to rule out is a urinary tract infectionits one of the most common types of infection overall, and 50 to 60 % of women get one in their lifetime, says Michael Ingber, M.D., a board-certified urogynecologist at the Center for Specialized Womens Health, a division of the Garden State Urology & Atlantic Medical Group in New Jersey.
Up to 60% of women will deal with a UTI in their lifetime.
That doesnt mean that men cant have a UTI, but women are about 30 times more likely than men to get one. Why? A womans urethra, the tube that carries urine out of the body, is shorter than a mans urethra, so bacteria dont have to travel as far to cause trouble, explains David Samadi, M.D., a board-certified urologic oncologist and director of Mens Health and Urologic Oncology at St. Francis Hospital in Roslyn, NY.
While UTIs can be really painful and may even cause you to feel pressure in your lower abdomen or result in foul-smelling, cloudy, or bloody urine, treatment typically only requires a urine test and a prescription antibiotic .
What Are The Symptoms
Symptoms of long-term prostatitis are often mild and start slowly over weeks or months. They may include:
- An urge to urinate often. But you may pass only small amounts of urine.
- A burning pain when you urinate.
- A problem starting the urine stream, urinating in waves rather than in a steady stream, urine flow that is weaker than normal, and dribbling after urinating.
- Waking up at night to urinate often.
- A feeling of not completely emptying your bladder.
- Pain in your lower back, in the area between the testicles and anus, in the lower belly or upper thighs, or above the pubic area. Pain may be worse during a bowel movement.
- Some pain during or after ejaculation.
- Pain in the tip of your penis.
Symptoms of acute prostatitis are the same, but they start suddenly and are severe. They may also include a fever and chills.
Some men may have no symptoms.
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Common Groin Pain Causes
Most often, groin pain is the result of a muscle, ligament, or tendon strain. This happens to a lot of men who play sports. The pain may happen right away, or it could build over time. Continuing the sport or activity may make the injury worse.
There are other conditions that can cause groin pain, including:
Inguinal hernia: This happens when fat or a loop of your intestine pushes through a weak spot in the muscles of your lower abdomen . You may see a bulge in your groin or scrotum. One quarter of all men will develop this problem sometime during their lifetime. If the intestine or fat gets stuck in the abdominal muscle wall, its blood supply may get cut off. Thatâs called a strangulated hernia.
Symptoms can include:
Get urgent care if you have any of these symptoms. A strangulated hernia is a life-threatening emergency.
Surgery can fix a hernia.
Prostatitis: This is swelling or infection in your prostate gland. In addition to pain, you may have a hard time peeing.
See your doctor. Prostatitis can sometimes go away on its own. But if itâs caused by an infection, you may need to take antibiotics.
Epididymitis: This is swelling in the tube where sperm is stored — the epididymis. Most often, an infection causes it. Signs and symptoms can include:
- Pain on one side of the scrotum that comes on slowly.
- Pain while peeing
- Fever
- Milky discharge from your penis
If bacteria is the cause of either condition, an antibiotic can clear it up.
What Natural Or Home Remedies Relieve Pain Symptoms And Treat Prostatitis
In addition to medical treatment, natural home remedies for prostatitis include:
- Warm sitz baths
- Avoid alcohol, caffeine, and spicy foods.
- Prostate massage: In a few studies, prostate massage has been shown to decrease symptoms in some patients with chronic nonbacterial prostatitis.
- Lifestyle changes: If you cycle or ride horses, it is recommended to suspend this activity until you improve.
- Although there are many herbal preparations available, there is no current evidence that herbal remedies are definitely helpful with prostatitis.
- Acupuncture has shown a decrease in symptoms for some people who suffer from prostatitis.
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Is A Prostate Massage The Same Thing As Trying For A Prostate Orgasm
Yes. If you massage the prostate in a way that feels good, youre probably going to have an orgasm if you keep at it.
Some doctors recommend prostate massage therapy to help relieve the symptoms of certain conditions, such as painful ejaculation prostatitis.
Yep! Though evidence on the efficacy of prostate massage for certain conditions is somewhat limited, it does appear to have some benefits.
What Are Medications And Surgery Procedures That Treat Bph
There are several different ways to treat BPH, and the treatment may vary with the different factors. Alpha-blockers and PDE-5 inhibitors commonly treat the dynamic factors associated with BPH, whereas 5-alpha reductase inhibitors and surgical interventions treat the static factors, and anticholinergics and beta 3-adrenoceptor agonists treat the compensatory factors.
Men should carefully weigh the risks and benefits of each of these options. Although surgical intervention tends to produce the most significant impact on symptoms, it is associated with greater risk and is typically reserved for individuals who fail medical therapy, either by lack of adequate symptom improvement or side effects of the medication.
Medical treatment of BPH is usually reserved for men who have an elevated AUA-SI :
Surgery or office procedures may also be used to treat BPH, most commonly in men who have not responded satisfactorily to medicine or those who have more severe problems, such as a complete inability to urinate, kidney problems due to the BPH, recurrent urinary tract infections, recurrent bladder stones, or gross hematuria .
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An Out Of Whack Bladder Could Be Causing Issues
If youre always looking for the bathroom because you have to pee upwards of eight times a day and its not just uncomfortable but hurts when you have to go, you could have interstitial cystitis, a.k.a. painful bladder syndrome.
Often, all you need to do is watch your intake of triggering spicy and acidic foods, but you might also need medication or additional procedures like botox injections, acupuncture, or a bladder pacemaker known as a sacral nerve stimulator to ease your symptoms, says Dr. Ingber.
More Information About Prostatitis
The following is an English-language resource that may be useful. Please note that THE MANUAL is not responsible for the content of this resource.
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Prostatitis Foundation: This organization provides access to relevant publications , patient testimonials, a list of providers who treat prostatitis in the United States and the United Kingdom, and access to third-party prostatitis-based web sites in French, Swedish, and Italian.
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Questions You May Want To Consider Asking Your Doctor Include:
- What type of prostate problem do I have?
- Is more testing needed and what will it tell me?
- If I decide on watchful waiting, what changes in my symptoms should I look for and how often should I be tested?
- What type of treatment do you recommend for my prostate problem?
- For men like me, has this treatment worked?
- How soon would I need to start treatment and how long would it last?
- Do I need medicine and how long would I need to take it before seeing improvement in my symptoms?
- What are the side effects of the medicine?
- Are there other medicines that could interfere with this medication?
- If I need surgery, what are the benefits and risks?
- Would I have any side effects from surgery that could affect my quality of life?
- Are these side effects temporary or permanent?
- How long is recovery time after surgery?
- Will I be able to fully return to normal?
- How will this affect my sex life?
- How often should I visit the doctor to monitor my condition?
Related Resources
How Is Prostatitis Diagnosed
Your healthcare provider will review your past health and sexual history. He or she will also do a physical exam. Other tests may include:
- Urine culture. This test collects prostatic fluid and urine. They are checked for white blood cells and bacteria.
- Digital rectal exam . In this test, the healthcare provider puts a gloved finger into the rectum to check the part of the prostate next to the rectum. This is done to look for swelling or tenderness.
- Prostate massage. The healthcare provider massages your prostate gland to drain fluid into the urethra. This fluid is then checked under a microscope to look for inflammation or infection. This test is usually done during a digital rectal exam .
- Semen culture. A semen sample is tested in the lab for bacteria and white blood cells.
- Cystoscopy. A thin, flexible tube and viewing device is put into the penis and through the urethra. Your healthcare provider uses the device to look at your bladder and urinary tract for structure changes or blockages.
- Transrectal ultrasound. A thin transducer is inserted into the rectum next to the prostate to show images of the prostate.
- CT scan. This is an imaging test that uses X-rays and a computer to make detailed images of the body. A CT scan shows details of the bones, muscles, fat, and organs.
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What Does A Prostate Orgasm Feel Like
P-spot orgasms are said to feel similar to penile orgasms, only way more intense and felt through the entire body.
There are reports of people having super orgasms, which are a stream of fast, continuous orgasms that cause the body to shudder.
Not everyone ejaculates during a prostate orgasm, but some release a dribble of milky fluid from the urethra.
A little bit of prep can help make the experience a good one whether youre flying solo, or on the giving or receiving end of things.
Causes Of Burning Sensation After Ejaculation
There are a few different things that can cause penis pain after ejaculation. These include:
For any cause, penis pain after urination or ejaculation needs to be discussed with your doctor. If the cause is infectious it is important to get treatment as early as possible to avoid complications. Men do not often know they have infections and untreated can cause kidney infections, infertility, and severe inflammation. Prostate cancer is highly treatable in the early stages of the disease.
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How Common Is Prostatitis
Prostatitis is the most common urinary tract problem for men younger than age 50 and the third most common urinary tract problem for men older than age 50.1 Prostatitis accounts for about two million visits to health care providers in the United States each year.2
Chronic prostatitis or chronic pelvic pain syndrome is
- the most common and least understood form of prostatitis.
- can occur in men of any age group.
- affects 10 to 15 percent of the U.S. male population.3
Can Prostatitis Come Back
Men who have had prostatitis once are more likely to get it again. Antibiotics may not get into the prostate gland well. Small amounts of bacteria might hide in the prostate and not be killed by the antibiotic. Once you stop taking the antibiotic, the infection can get bad again. If this happens, you might have to take antibiotics for a long time to prevent another infection. Prostatitis that is not caused by infection is often chronic. If you have this kind of prostatitis, you might have to take medicine for a long time.
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What Treatment Can I Have
There are different ways to treat pain. Whats best for you will depend on a number of things, including whats causing the pain, your general health, how you are feeling emotionally and what sort of things you do in your daily life. Because pain involves all of these things, treating it often means using a few different approaches.
You might need treatment for the pain itself, such as:
Pain might be a sign that your prostate cancer treatment isnt working as well as it was. A different treatment for your cancer may help the pain. Possible treatments include:
- hormone therapy
- a type of radiotherapy called radium-223.
There are other things that may also help with pain, including:
- complementary therapies
- emotional support
- treatments for other causes of pain, such as antibiotics to treat infection.
Does Prostatitis Cause Cancer
Although prostatitis can cause you trouble, it does not cause cancer. There is a blood test some doctors use for prostate cancer called the prostate-specific antigen test . If you have prostatitis, your PSA level might go up. This does not mean you have cancer. Your doctor will treat your prostatitis and may check your PSA level again.
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What Are The Symptoms Of Prostatitis
Each type of prostatitis has a range of symptoms that vary depending on the cause and may not be the same for every man. Many symptoms are similar to those of other conditions.
Chronic prostatitis/chronic pelvic pain syndrome. The main symptoms of chronic prostatitis/chronic pelvic pain syndrome can include pain or discomfort lasting 3 or more months in one or more of the following areas:
- between the scrotum and anus
- the central lower abdomen
- the scrotum
- the lower back
Pain during or after ejaculation is another common symptom. A man with chronic prostatitis/chronic pelvic pain syndrome may have pain spread out around the pelvic area or may have pain in one or more areas at the same time. The pain may come and go and appear suddenly or gradually. Other symptoms may include
- pain in the urethra during or after urination.
- pain in the penis during or after urination.
- urinary frequencyurination eight or more times a day. The bladder begins to contract even when it contains small amounts of urine, causing more frequent urination.
- urinary urgencythe inability to delay urination.
- a weak or an interrupted urine stream.
Acute bacterial prostatitis. The symptoms of acute bacterial prostatitis come on suddenly and are severe. Men should seek immediate medical care. Symptoms of acute bacterial prostatitis may include
Type Of Prostate Pain
Prostate pain can be non-specific and often associated with chronic unexplained pelvic pain in men . The presence of urinary symptoms, microorganisms and inflammatory cells in the urine and semen are the only conclusive indication that the pain is associated with the prostate gland.
Prostate pain is often described as discomfort or pain that lies deep to the penis and scrotum although most patients will report that it is not extending to the rectum. The character of the pain can vary significantly with some patients reporting a mild discomfort like the bladder is not completely empty pressure or fullness but not actual pain.
At other times, it may be described as a dull ache or pain that is mild, moderate or severe. The pain may be burning, attacks of sharp or stabbing pain, or a bursting pain similar to an extremely distended bladder. Identifying a prostate condition solely on the location and nature of the pain is difficult and therefore other symptoms have to be noted.
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With A Massager Strap
If youre playing with sex toys, you can really mix it up by playing with the different vibration settings, as well as pressure and depth.
- Pressure. Controlling pressure when using a toy is easier, especially when youre playing solo. Try pressing the toy against the prostate using more or less pressure till you find your sweet spot.
- Depth. Depth is another area where toys win out since reaching can make it hard to go deep, if thats what you crave. Try different sized anal toys or get a longer one that you can insert as deep as your bottom desires.
- Vibrations. You can buy prostate massagers that offer up multiple speed and pulse settings. Play with the different settings to find your preference. Up the vibes as you get closer to orgasm.
- Sensation. Some prostate massagers have an attached external stimulator to give your perineum some sweet lovin while the other end penetrates. Who doesnt love a hard worker?
Want a little more?
If your partner has a penis, you can kick things up a notch with penis-in-anus penetration. Prostate stimulation for you, penile stimulation for them and a happy ending for you both.
Different positions can make reaching and pleasuring the prostate easier. These positions work for external and internal prostate stimulation, alone and with a partner.
Causes Of Prostate Pain When Sitting
Fact Checked
Pain in the area between the penis and rectum when sitting is most often associated with inflammation of the prostate, or prostatitis. It may feel like you are sitting on a golf ball or other hard object. Conditions such as infection, an underlying medical condition or pinched nerve can cause this type of pain.
If you are experiencing serious medical symptoms, seek emergency treatment immediately.
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