Prostate Cancer, Facts Are The Best Defense

Added: 01/29/2006

Prostate cancer facts bear out that this is a disease of older men with the average age of diagnosis being approximately 70. After the age of 50, however, men should be routinely screened for this cancer especially if their family history and genetic make-up puts them at a higher risk factor. Fortunately, prostate cancer is a slow growing disease and many men live with it until they die of some other condition.

The second most deadly cancer in men after lung cancer is prostate cancer. Facts indicate that after the age of fifty men should be routinely screened to check for this disease since prostate cancer usually presents with no symptoms. The average age at diagnosis is approximately seventy and in most cases men with prostate cancer die of something else before their cancer negatively impacts their lives. This does not, however, mean that men should ignore this aspect of their health care.

The Prostate Cancer Foundation works to make prostate cancer facts available to men to increase both an awareness of and understanding of this disease. The Prostate Cancer Foundation also funds intensive research programs in an effort to find a cure. At this time no definitive cure exists and because prostate cancer is a disease of older men, many opt, in the absence of a spreading of the disease to other parts of the body, to engage in a program of watchful waiting with regular monitoring.

In treating prostate cancer, facts have shown that both radiation and hormone therapy can be effective in slowing the progression of the disease although chemotherapy is rarely used. Surgery is also an option during which the prostate gland is actually removed. This procedure is usually followed by one of the standard cancer treatments.

For a man faced with prostate cancer, facts are the first and best weapon. Like any disease, myths abound. The prostate is a gland in the male reproductive system located under the bladder and in front of the rectum. It assists the body in the production and storage of semen. Because a portion of the prostate wraps around the urethra, the narrow tube that carries urine from the bladder to the penis, urinary problems such as inability to start or decreased flow can be an early sign of prostate problems.

With metastasizing of prostate cancer, facts indicate the cancer cells are most likely to head into the vertebrae, the pelvis, or the ribs. At that point men may experience increased urination, especially at night and may detect blood in their urine. Sexual dysfunction may occur or ejaculation may be painful. If the cancer has entered the spine, weakness in the legs is also a telltale sign.

Fortunately, however, prostate cancer tends to progress very slowly and thus is one of the cancers more likely to be maintained without a significant decrease in the quality of a man's life. It is extremely important for a man to learn about prostate cancer. Facts rather than myths will help a patient to determine, in concert with his physician, what course of action is best for his individual case.

The Prostate Cancer Foundation's website at www.prostatecancerfoundation.org has a wealth of information about screening procedures, symptoms, risk factors (many of which are genetic), and potential treatments. The more you, as a patient, learn about your disease the better you will be able to combat its presence in your body. Knowledge is key to living with prostate cancer.

Rate this article:

Bad

Good

Article comments:

No comments for this article yet. Post your comment now!

Return to top of the page