Prostate cancer

Prostate cancer is one of the most common cancers in men. About one man in six will be diagnosed with prostate cancer in his lifetime but because prostate cancer is usually slow growing there is a significantly high chance of being cured, especially when detected early. That´s why regular checks are important for men aged 50 years and more. And indeed, prostate cancer is detected randomly in the vast majority of cases on the basis of elevated prostate specific antigen (PSA) levels in blood.


The risk for prostate cancer increases with age (about two out of three men with prostate cancer are over age 65). Family history could be another factor - having a father or brother with prostate cancer more than doubles the risk. Also men who eat high-fat diets may be at higher risk.
  

Symptoms


If you have troubles urinating such as urges to urinate or dribbling, or problems with erection, you should raise this problem with your GP or urologist. Actually, prostate cancer can cause similar symptoms as BPH, so only medical examination allows to exclude or confirm diagnosis of cancer at early stage.
In case you find blood in urine or in sperm, you should not hesitate any longer to go to the doctor.
 

Treatment


To find out if prostate symptoms are caused by cancer, your doctor will ask about your past medical problems, your family’s medical history and will perform a standard prostate exam including check of PSA in blood whose elevated level is one of indicators of prostate cancer (however the elevation of PSA can be also caused by other conditions such as prostatitis).
Only if these tests show that you might have cancer, your doctor will refer you to a urologist for a prostate biopsy that is key for final diagnosis.

Treatment of prostate cancer depends on several factors - e.g. phase of the disease, your age or overall health. As medecine developed a lot in the past years, treatment is performed by specialized urologists who will propose and explain the treatment options that are the best for you