How To Check Your Prostate
This article was co-authored by Robert Dhir, MD. Dr. Robert Dhir is a board certified Urologist, Urological Surgeon, and the Founder of HTX Urology in Houston, Texas. With over 10 years of experience, Dr. Dhirs expertise includes minimally-invasive treatments for enlarged prostate , kidney stone disease, surgical management of urological cancers, and mens health . His practice has been named a Center of Excellence for the UroLift procedure, and is a pioneer in non-surgical procedures for ED using his patented Wave Therapy. He earned his undergraduate and medical degrees from Georgetown University and was awarded honors in pre-medical studies, urology, orthopedics, and ophthalmology. Dr. Dhir served as chief resident during his urological surgical residency at University of Texas at Houston / MD Anderson Cancer Center in addition to completing his internship in general surgery. Dr. Dhir was voted Top Doctor in Urology for 2018 to 2019, one of the top three Best Rated Urologists in 2019 & 2020 for Houston Texas, and Texas Monthly has named him to the 2019 & 2020 Texas Super Doctors Rising Stars list.wikiHow marks an article as reader-approved once it receives enough positive feedback. This article received 11 testimonials and 85% of readers who voted found it helpful, earning it our reader-approved status. This article has been viewed 1,066,224 times.
Bladder And Urinary Troubles
A prostate tumor that has grown significantly in size may start to press on your bladder and urethra. The urethra is the passage the carries urine from your bladder out of your body. If the tumor is pressing on your urethra, you might have trouble passing urine.
One of the common areas for prostate cancer to spread to is the bladder, because the two organs are close. This can cause additional problems with urination and bladder function.
Some symptoms your bladder and urethra are being affected by cancer include:
- urinating more frequently
- getting up in the middle of the night to pee
- having blood in your urine or semen
- feeling like you have to urinate often and not actually passing anything
Its not as common, but prostate cancer can also spread to your bowel. The cancer first spreads to the rectum, which is the part of your bowel closest to the prostate gland.
Symptoms of cancer thats spread to the bowels include:
- stomach pain
How You Might Feel
When prostate cancer is advanced, it can no longer be cured. But treatment can control it for some time and help to relieve symptoms.
Finding out that your cancer cant be cured is distressing and can be a shock. Its common to feel uncertain and anxious. It’s normal not to be able to think about anything else.
Lots of information and support are available to you, your family and your friends. It can help to find out more about your cancer and the treatments you might have. Many people find that knowing more about their situation can make it easier to cope.
Talk to your doctor or nurse to understand:
- what your diagnosis means
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Tests Used To Check The Prostate
This first step lets your doctor hear and understand the story of your prostate concerns. Youll be asked whether you have symptoms, how long youve had them, and how much they affect your lifestyle. Your personal medical history also includes any risk factors, pain, fever, or trouble passing urine. You may be asked to give a urine sample for testing.
What Is The Prognosis For People Who Have Prostatitis
Antibiotics can cure acute bacterial prostatitis. These medications also ease chronic bacterial prostatitis symptoms in approximately 30% to 60% of men. Up to 80% of men with chronic pelvic pain syndrome feel better after receiving appropriate treatments for their symptoms using the UPOINT system. Men with asymptomatic inflammatory prostatitis dont need treatment.
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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.
When To Contact A Medical Professional
- Less urine than usual
- Back, side, or abdominal pain
- Blood or pus in your urine
Also call if:
- Your bladder does not feel completely empty after you urinate.
- You take medicines that may cause urinary problems, such as diuretics, antihistamines, antidepressants, or sedatives. DO NOT stop or change your medicines without talking to your provider.
- You have tried self-care steps for 2 months and symptoms have not improved.
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When To Seek Medical Care
A person may have urinary symptoms unrelated to prostatitis that are caused by bladder problems, UTIs, or benign prostatic hyperplasia. Symptoms of prostatitis also can signal more serious conditions, including prostate cancer.
Men with symptoms of prostatitis should see a health care provider.
Men with the following symptoms should seek immediate medical care:
- complete inability to urinate
Testing Options For Prostate Cancer
There is no one age for prostate cancer testing, but the American Cancer Society makes recommendations about prostate cancer screenings. According to the ACS, patients in any of these groups should consider asking their doctor about testing:
- Men age 50 or older who have an average risk of prostate cancer and a life expectancy of at least 10 more years
- Men age 45 or older with a high risk, including African-American men and those with a first-degree relative who had prostate cancer before age 65
- Men age 40 or older who have a higher risk, such as more than one first-degree relative diagnosed with prostate cancer at an early age
Expert cancer care
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When To See A Physician
Many back pain progressively improves with house treatment and self-care, typically within a couple of weeks. Contact your physician if your back pain:
Persists past a few weeks Lower Back Pain Associated With Prostate Cancer
Is extreme and also doesnt boost with rest
Spreads down one or both legs, specifically if the discomfort extends listed below the knee
Causes weakness, numbness or tingling in one or both legs
Is accompanied by inexplicable weight loss
In uncommon cases, back pain can indicate a significant clinical problem. Look for immediate care if your back pain:
Causes brand-new bowel or bladder troubles
Is accompanied by a fever
Adheres to a fall, strike to your back or various other injury Request a Visit at Mayo Clinic
Low Back Pain Brought On By Spinal Degeneration And Injury.
Repeated heavy lifting or a sudden awkward movement can strain back muscular tissues as well as spine tendons. If you remain in inadequate physical problem, continuous strain on your back can trigger painful muscle spasms.
Disks function as pillows in between the bones in your spinal column. The soft product inside a disk can protrude or burst and press on a nerve. Nevertheless, you can have a bulging or burst disk without back pain. Disk illness is frequently found incidentally when you have spine X-rays for a few other reason.
Your spinal columns vertebrae can create unpleasant fractures if your bones come to be permeable and also brittle.
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What Questions Should I Ask My Healthcare Provider
If you have prostate cancer, you may want to ask your healthcare provider:
- Why did I get prostate cancer?
- What is my Gleason score? What is my Grade Group? What do these numbers mean for me?
- Has the cancer spread outside of the prostate gland?
- What is the best treatment for the stage of prostate cancer I have?
- If I choose active surveillance, what can I expect? What signs of cancer should I look out for?
- What are the treatment risks and side effects?
- Is my family at risk for developing prostate cancer? If so, should we get genetic tests?
- Am I at risk for other types of cancer?
- What type of follow-up care do I need after treatment?
- Should I look out for signs of complications?
A note from Cleveland Clinic
Prostate cancer is a common cancer that affects males. Most prostate cancers grow slowly and remain in the prostate gland. For a small number, the disease can be aggressive and spread quickly to other parts of the body. Men with slow-growing prostate cancers may choose active surveillance. With this approach, you can postpone, and sometimes completely forego, treatments. Your healthcare provider can discuss the best treatment option for you based on your Gleason score and Group Grade.
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So Lets Say Youre Diagnosed With Prostate Cancer What Do You Do Now
Dr. Samadi: Weve seen a lot of ads about radiation and surgery. The certain fact is that the one-size-fits-all is the wrong medical approach. You have to talk to your urologist about what would be the best option for treating your prostate cancer. What I like about surgery is the fact that, a lot of times, you remove the prostate and surgery is the only practice that gives you a very accurate staging. How much cancer you have, tracking changes in your PSA after surgery. The value should be zero and undetectable so you can rest at night. This is not the same with radiation. If somebody will get surgery first and the cancer comes back, you can try radiation. Meanwhile, after radiation, if the cancer comes back, in most cases, you cant get surgery. After the prostate is removed, we follow the PSA and as long as its undetectable youre cured.
Are There Prostate Cancer Risk Factors To Consider
Cancer researchers have identified several factors that could increase a mans risk of developing prostate cancer. In considering whether any of these risk factors apply to you, remember that having one or more of them does not mean you will get the disease. However, you should be sure to get all the prostate cancer screenings your physician recommends. It is also important to know that men without these risk factors may also have prostate cancer.
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Arthritis Of The Spine
Arthritis of the spine the slow degeneration of the spinal joints is the most frequent cause of lower back pain. All of us experience wear and tear as we age, and it is normal for your lower back to start acting up as you get older. As the cartilage breaks down between the spinal joints, surrounding tissues may become inflamed. The inflammation and the thinning of cartilage increase friction in the joints, which may cause pain in the lower back.
Celebrity Urologist Tells The Truth About Prostate Cancer
There is something that affects millions of men every year and thats prostate cancer. Urologist dr. David Samadi is one of the most qualified professionals to answer simple questions like how do you detect prostate cancer, what can you do to watch for it and what do you do if you receive a prostate cancer diagnosis. The most important fact that people need to know is that, in 2016, 30.000 men died from prostate cancer. The disease is highly curable if caught early on and experienced surgeons like dr. Samadi play an important part in raising general awareness on the issue.
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Prostate Cancer Diagnoses And Treatment
All cancer is complex, but prostate cancer testing and treatment is particularly complicated.
In some men with prostate cancer, the cancer will grow very slowly, and wont significantly affect them during their lifetime. Other mens prostate cancer can grow and spread very quickly. At the moment, there is no test that can tell what type of prostate cancer a man has when he is diagnosed.
Because some treatments for prostate cancer can cause side effects which might impact on quality of life, its important for men to discuss with their doctor all their options for testing and treatment, and to discuss these with their partners and families. These might include watchful waiting, which means waiting to see what the cancer does over time, radiation, surgery or taking medications.
You can read more about what kinds of questions to ask your doctors about prostate cancer testing and treatment on the Cancer Council website.
How To Reduce Prostate Inflammation
An enlarged prostate or Prostatitis is a common condition in men over 40 years of age. This condition, that generates annoying symptoms, must be diagnosed and monitored by a urologist who will determine if it is bacterial prostatitis or of a chronic nature. Changes in diet as well as some changes in lifestyle habits and the intake of certain home remedies can help to shrink the prostate and improve the quality of life of patients. At oneHOWTO we explain in detail how to reduce prostate inflammation and improve your health.
An enlarged prostate is a condition that must be diagnosed and monitored by a urologist as it is necessary to determine the cause of this condition to then find the ideal treatment. In addition to medical recommendations that should be strictly followed there are some changes in lifestyle habits are also important to take to promote a reduction of the prostate.
The first step is to have a diet which is rich in fibre in order to improve the intestinal transit and prevent constipation, a condition that may increase the symptoms and discomfort of patients with an enlarged prostate. Fruits, vegetables and grains are essential to achieve this and should be consumed daily, while avoiding high-fat ingredients that can hinder digestion.
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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.
If It Spreads Advanced Symptoms Of Prostate Cancer
As we discussed before, this type of cancer has malignant properties, and due to close proximity to the gland where it is formed with other organs, it can spread in severe cases. The metastatic tumor can grow and spread to bones or even the spine thrusting on the spinal nerves. The signs of severity may show through the following:
- Swollen legs and the pelvic
- Numbing of the hips, feet, and legs
- Pain in feet, hips, or legs
- Mulish ache in bones which can also cause fractures.
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Does Prostatitis Increase Prostate Cancer Risk
Current evidence suggests that prostatitis, or other prostate problems, does not increase a persons chances of developing prostate cancer.
However, a person with prostatitis may be more likely to receive a prostate cancer diagnosis. This is because they may have more interactions with healthcare professionals and diagnostic testing, leading to the detection and diagnosis of prostate cancer.
Researchers are investigating whether inflammation may contribute towards the eventual development of prostate cancer, but as yet, no evidence indicates this.
Talking To Your Doctor
Your doctor or health care professional can help you better understand what youre feeling when you touch your prostate.
They can also help you figure out whats causing it and what you can do about it.
Your doctor or health care professional can also talk about other ways you may be able to find relief.
If youre having trouble talking about it, or youre not sure what to do, your doctor or health care professional can help you figure out whats going on.
Here are some things they might say or do:
- You might say that your prostate feels like its very hard to describe.
- You might say that you feel a strong sensation of pressure or that you feel a sensation like when you touch your penis.
- They might say that its very hard to describe this sensation, and you may not know what it is.
They might say that they cant tell you exactly why its happening.
They might also say that its possible that you have prostate cancer, or other health conditions, that are causing it.
You might also feel that your doctor or health care professional doesnt believe that youre having a prostate problem.
They might say that you have no symptoms, so it may not be a serious problem.
They may also say that its possible that you have another condition thats causing it, and that its not prostate cancer.
Here are some things your doctor or health care professional might say:
- You might say that there are other things that you can do to help you better understand what youre feeling.
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Radiotherapy To The Prostate
Some men who have just been diagnosed with advanced prostate cancer may be offered external beam radiotherapy as part of their first treatment. This is where high-energy X-ray beams are directed at the prostate from outside the body. The X-ray beams damage the cancer cells and stop them from dividing and growing. Read more about radiotherapy for advanced prostate cancer.
Radiotherapy to the prostate isnt suitable for all men with advanced prostate cancer. If it isnt suitable for you, you might be offered a type of radiotherapy to help manage symptoms instead.