Prostate cancer symptoms and warning signs
Prostate cancer is a disease found in men that develops in the prostate gland.
One in eight men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer in their lifetime, according to the American Cancer Society (ACS), with older men more likely to develop the disease.
Prostate cancer is second only to skin cancer as the most common cancer diagnosed in men, according to the source.
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Symptoms of prostate cancer are typically very minimal, or not experienced at all.
Below is all you need to know about prostate cancer.
One of the most common ways to screen for prostate cancer in men is through a prostate-specific antigen (PSA) test. (iStock)
- What is prostate cancer?
- What are the signs and symptoms?
- What are some prostate cancer risk factors?
- What are the types of prostate cancer?
- Is prostate cancer curable?
- What should you do if you think you have prostate cancer?
- What should I know about PSA screening?
1. What is prostate cancer?
Any type of cancer starts when cells grow out of control in certain parts of the body.
Nearly every part of the body can be affected by cancerous cells, and they can then spread to other areas.
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Prostate cancer is a type of cancer found in men that begins in the prostate gland and can then grow beyond that in more severe cases.
2. What are the signs and symptoms?
“The most common symptom is no symptom at all,” Dr. Christopher Anderson, a urologist with New York-Presbyterian/Columbia University Irving Medical Center, previously told Fox News Digital in 2017.
Some men may experience symptoms such as pain in their bones and weight loss when the cancer has already spread, Anderson said.
Dr. Philip Kantoff, a medical oncologist and chair of the department of medicine at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, reiterated that the disease does not typically cause symptoms.
Symptoms could instead be due to an enlarged or inflamed prostate, neither of which are cancerous.
For many men with prostate cancer, there aren’t any symptoms present. They continue to perform daily tasks without being negatively impacted by the disease. (iStock)
Dr. Ketan Badani, vice chairman of urology at Mount Sinai Health System, said that “some patients may have vague urinary complaints,” like having to urinate more frequently, and that there are no symptoms until the disease is advanced.
The majority of men who have urinary issues do not have prostate cancer, he noted.
3. What are some prostate cancer risk factors?
Men ages 60 to 74 are considered more at risk, according to the Surveillance, Epidemiology and End Results (SEER) program.
Family history, “especially a first-degree relative like a father or brother” who has been diagnosed, is another concern, Badani added.
African, Afro-Caribbean, South Asian and Hispanic men are more at risk for “more aggressive” forms of prostate cancer, he said.
For men of African descent, there is an increased risk of both prostate cancer diagnosis and dying from prostate cancer, Anderson said.
There are several lifestyle changes men can implement into their lives to potentially reduce their risk of prostate cancer. This includes maintaining a healthy weight, staying active and having a healthy diet, according to the ACS, such as one including very little red and processed meat and processed foods, but filled with lots of fruits, vegetables and whole grains.
Age is one of the major risk factors for developing prostate cancer. (iStock)
4. What are the types of prostate cancer?
Most commonly, prostate cancer is adenocarcinomas, meaning it develops in the gland cells, according to ACS.
There are other types of prostate cancer, according to the source, but these are rare.
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Other types are small cell carcinoma, neuroendocrine tumors, transitional cell carcinomas and sarcomas.
In general, prostate cancer grows very slowly.
Many people who have it die from other causes without ever knowing that they had the cancer, according to the ACS.
The most common type of prostate cancer is adenocarcinoma, though there are different variations of the cancer that a person could be diagnosed with. (iStock)
5. Is prostate cancer curable?
Prostate cancer is curable, so long as it’s diagnosed early enough, according to Mayo Clinic.
Treatment options will depend on the stage of the cancer and the overall health of the individual. For early prostate cancer, immediate treatment may not be needed, per the source.
More severe cases of cancer are usually treated through radiation or surgery.
6. What should you do if you think you have prostate cancer?
“A discussion with your physician is warranted before symptoms occur,” Kantoff advised, adding that men should decide with their doctors if a prostate-specific antigen (PSA) test, which looks at the level of PSA in blood, is right for them.
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Badani recommended that men receive both annual digital rectal exams and PSA tests. Multiple PSA tests over time are a better indicator of potential concerns as opposed to a single test result, he explained.
If you are concerned you might have prostate cancer, speak to an internal medicine doctor or a urologist, Anderson recommended. He stressed that all patients with blood in their urine should see a urologist.
PSA screening isn’t widely reccommended for everyone, and it’s important to talk with your doctor to make the best decision for you and your overall health. (iStock)
7. What should I know about PSA screening?
PSA screening has been a controversial topic in the past. In 2012, the U.S. Preventative Services Task Force recommended against PSA screening when it said “there is moderate certainty that the benefits of PSA-based screening for prostate cancer do not outweigh the harms.”
In 2018, the task force said in its final recommendation that men ages 55 to 69 should discuss potential benefits and negatives of a PSA screening with their physician before undergoing the test.
While a PSA screening has the potential to reduce the risk of death, negatives listed by the task force include “false-positive results that require additional testing and possible prostate biopsy; overdiagnosis and overtreatment; and treatment complications, such as incontinence and erectile dysfunction.”
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They do not recommend PSA screening in men ages 70 and above.
“Proper use of PSA is what I recommend from an early detection standpoint,” Kantoff said.
Symptoms should not be the motivating factor for screening, he said, saying it should instead be a decision in one’s 40s about whether PSA testing should be done. He recommended that those with a family history or people of African American descent think about early detection.
An analysis of previous clinical trials published in 2017 said screening lessened the risk of dying from prostate cancer by 25 to 32% compared to men who did not get screened, a summary for patients explains online.
The Associated Press contributed reporting, as did Andy Sahadeo and Zoe Szathmary.
