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
Cancer That Clearly Has Spread
If the cancer has spread outside the prostate, it will most likely go to nearby lymph nodes first, and then to bones. Much less often the cancer will spread to the liver or other organs.
When prostate cancer has spread to other parts of the body , hormone therapy is probably the most effective treatment. But it isnt likely to cure the cancer, and at some point it might stop working. Usually the first treatment is a luteinizing hormone-releasing hormone agonist, LHRH antagonist, or orchiectomy, sometimes along with an anti-androgen drug or abiraterone. Another option might be to get chemotherapy along with the hormone therapy. Other treatments aimed at bone metastases might be used as well.
How To Know Whether It Is Cancer
If you have any of the mentioned signs, you should see a doctor. They will take the steps to rule out cancer.
However, you can read here the different options :
RECTAL EXAMINATION
The doctor checks your prostate through your rectum, with a finger. The prostate is in contact with the rectum so this is the way to palpate it.
Doing so, the doctor can check if it is enlarged, if it has hard nodules
PSA
It is detected through a blood test. The more prostatic tissue you have, the higher value of PSA you have.
It is useful if you have a normal PSA value, because that virtually rules out cancer. If your PSA is okey, your prostate is probably ok.
However, if you have a high PSA then you have more prostatic tissue than normal. Maybe you have BPH .
Prostatitis also causes a high PSA, because of the irritated tissue.
So if PSA is normal then everything is good. If PSA is high you probably need some extra tests to find out what is wrong.
An increased PSA can be due to prostate cancer, but also to BPH and prostatitis.
PROSTATE MRI
You go inside the MRI machine and stay still for around 30 minutes.
Usually, it also requires intravenous contrast so you will need an IV line.
- This test will tell the doctor if there are any suspiciousnodules inside the prostate. Also, it will show the prostate cancer stage.
- It will also show if it is a large prostate, but with no malignant nodules .
If there are no nodules, everythings fine. If there are you may need a biopsy.
PROSTATE BIOPSY
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What Should You Do If You Have The Symptoms Of Prostate Cancer
If you are presenting one or more of the warning signs of prostate cancer, then it would be wise to promptly consult with a qualified physician. Your symptoms may indicate another, less serious condition and even if you do receive a diagnosis of prostate cancer, it is much easier to treat this disease when detected early on.
To learn more, contact our team of medical professionals at Care New England today.
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Is It Always Cancer
HOWEVER, as we said, most prostate tumors dont happen in the central gland, but in the peripheral zone. And this zone is far from the urethra.
So, many times, when we have these symptoms they are NOT because of cancer.
They are because of something else like benign prostatic hyperplasia . This disorder is way more frequent and many men suffer it after a certain age .
Whats more, pain and burn are also caused by prostatitis .
So how can we tell between cancer and the others ?
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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.
How Common Is Prostate Cancer
About one in nine men will receive a prostate cancer diagnosis during his lifetime. Prostate cancer is second only to skin cancer as the most common cancer affecting males. Close to 200,000 American men receive a diagnosis of prostate cancer every year. There are many successful treatments and some men dont need treatment at all. Still, approximately 33,000 men die from the disease every year.
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Swelling In Your Legs And Feet
According to Johns Hopkins University, swelling in your lower extremities could be a symptom of advanced prostate cancer, especially when it occurs alongside other symptoms, including urinary or erectile dysfunction. When the cancer spreads to the lymph nodes, it causes a blockage, which leads to the build-up of fluids and swelling in your body. And for more on serious cancer symptoms you need to know about, check out 13 Warning Signs Your Pancreas Is Trying to Tell You Somethings Wrong.
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Recurrent Prostate Cancer Symptoms
Prostate cancer that returns after treatment is considered recurrent. When it returns to the area around the prostate, the disease is classified as a local recurrence. If the cancer is found in another part of the body, the recurrent cancer is considered metastatic. If the cancer metastasizes outside the prostate, it most likely develops in bones first. Metastatic prostate cancer most often spreads to the liver, bones and lungs.
After initial treatment for prostate cancer, PSA levels are expected to drop dramatically. The first sign of recurrent prostate cancer may be a rise in the PSA level. Other symptoms of recurrent cancer may depend on whether and where the cancer has spread. Symptoms include:
- Blood in the urine
- Difficulty breathing
- Jaundice
Patients should discuss any symptoms with their doctor and ask about scheduling regular PSA tests after treatment.
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What Is Advanced Prostate Cancer
When prostate cancer spreads beyond the prostate or returns after treatment, it is often called advanced prostate cancer.
Prostate cancer is often grouped into four stages.
- Stages I & II: The tumor has not spread beyond the prostate. This is often called early stage or localized prostate cancer.
- Stage III: Cancer has spread outside the prostate, but only to nearby tissues. This is often called locally advanced prostate cancer.
- Stage IV: Cancer has spread outside the prostate to other parts such as the lymph nodes, bones, liver or lungs. This stage is often called advanced prostate cancer.
When an early stage prostate cancer is found, it may be treated or placed on surveillance . If prostate cancer spreads beyond the prostate or returns after treatment, it is often called advanced prostate cancer. Stage IV prostate cancer is not curable, but there are many ways to control it. Treatment can stop advanced prostate cancer from growing and causing symptoms.
There are several types of advanced prostate cancer, including:
Biochemical Recurrence
If your Prostate Specific Antigen level has risen after the first treatment but you have no other signs of cancer, you have “biochemical recurrence.”
Castration-Resistant Prostate Cancer
Non-Metastatic Castration-Resistant Prostate Cancer
Metastatic Prostate Cancer
- Lymph nodes outside the pelvis
- Bones
- Other organs
Metastatic Hormone-Sensitive Prostate Cancer
Early Signs Of Prostate Cancer
While any of the above symptoms can be your first indication that you have prostate cancer, urinary symptoms are more likely than other symptoms to appear early.
Its important to keep in mind that most of these symptoms can also be caused by other conditions that arent cancer. These conditions include benign prostatic hyperplasia and prostatitis.
So, while its important to keep tabs on any symptoms you may have, remember that theres a good chance theyre not caused by cancer.
That said, neither of these conditions causes blood to appear in your urine. If you have this symptom, call your doctor right away.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention .
Its also because the results from the prostate-specific antigen test, which can be part of the screening, may lead to a misdiagnosis of cancer. For both of these reasons, screening could cause unnecessary worry and unneeded treatment.
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How The Prostate Changes As You Age
Because the prostate gland tends to grow larger with age, it may squeeze the urethra and cause problems in passing urine. Sometimes men in their 30s and 40s may begin to have these urinary symptoms and need medical attention. For others, symptoms aren’t noticed until much later in life. An infection or a tumor can also make the prostate larger. Be sure to tell your doctor if you have any of the urinary symptoms listed below.
Tell your doctor if you have these urinary symptoms:
- Are passing urine more during the day
- Have an urgent need to pass urine
- Have less urine flow
- Feel burning when you pass urine
- Need to get up many times during the night to pass urine
Growing older raises your risk of prostate problems. The three most common prostate problems are inflammation , enlarged prostate , and prostate cancer.
One change does not lead to another. For example, having prostatitis or an enlarged prostate does not increase your risk of prostate cancer. It is also possible for you to have more than one condition at the same time.
How Can I Check Myself For Prostate Cancer
For a disease that is the second most fatal cancer in men, its symptoms are not very apparent. It can be quite a task to detect the presence of prostate cancer, unless it becomes enormous and presses on the urethra, thus causing trouble in its regular functions. As discussed before, what you may suffer through in prostate cancer can be just another urinary abnormality too. Knowing the risks is how you can make it a little easier for yourself.
Since PSA testing has been controversial over the years it was only recently that a new way of testing yourself at home was developed. The East Anglia, Norfolk, and Norwich Universitys science management departments collaborated to invent whats called a PUR test. You can now simply test the possibility of having prostate cancer by collecting your first urine of the day and sending it for an examination. The results have proven to show more biomarkers of prostate cancer than what is visible after a digital rectal exam.
PUR test is more of a diagnostic where the level of prostate malignancy can be detected. It can save you a lot of time of surveillance that is usually a requirement when a patient is undergoing tumor development. So, if youre facing any of the symptoms mentioned before specifically related to urine problems do a PUR test collection and home and get it tested to be on the safe side.
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Genetic Testing For Prostate Cancer
You may hear a lot about genetics or genomics. Both terms are related to genes and cell DNA, but they are different. These tests are being used to learn more about the DNA of cancer cells, and link DNA mutations with treatments. In the future, genetic testing may be the first step doctors take when diagnosing prostate cancer.
Blood In Urine Or Semen
Bleeding is a common symptom in many types of cancer, including prostate cancer. Cancer cells divide rapidly and create new tissue that grows very large. If they do not create new blood vessels, the excess tissue will die from starvation. Thus, they trigger something called angiogenesis, that is, new blood vessel creation.
These blood vessels are abnormal, often fragile, and prone to bleeding. Plus, we have inflammation in prostate cancer. There are more blood vessels, and they increase their blood flow due to inflammation.
The urine goes through the prostatic portion of the urethra. The prostate gland partly releases the seminal fluid. Thus, theres a clear rationale as to why patients with prostate cancer notice blood in the urine and semen. However, this sign is unlikely to be the first one to show up in a patient with prostate cancer.
Males with blood in the semen due to prostate cancer usually had previous urinary symptoms described above. In some cases, they neglected their condition, attributed the disease to something normal as we age, or got used to the symptoms and didnt realize their progression.
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Different Signs + Different Men = Difficult To Diagnose
Symptoms of prostate cancer can be different for each man, and any of the symptoms can be due to other less serious conditions. This makes diagnosing prostate cancer more difficult for doctors, so screenings are necessary.
This walnut sized gland is needed for sperm to travel to its destination, so its pretty important. It gets larger over time, but that doesnt necessarily mean a man has cancer.
If you have some of the warning signs, it doesnt necessarily mean you have cancer, while at the same time you can be diagnosed with prostate cancer without any of the signs. This is confusing and frustrating for both doctors and patients.
There are few, if any, early signs but there are certain signals that indicate something is wrong.
Who Can Be More At Risk
13 out of 100 men in America have a risk of developing prostate cancer at some point and time in their lives, and at least two of these men may die of it. The main risk factor is just being a man. However, some of the characteristics are specific, and they may include these:
- If you are African American
- If you are 50 years old or above
- If any of your immediate family members has a history of having this disease
- If you consume a diet with high amounts of saturated fats, or if you are obese
- If you have developed very high levels of testosterone
Posted on by Southwest Diagnostic Center for Molecular Imagingin Cancer Screening, Prostate Cancer
Do you know that prostate cancer is the second leading cause of cancer deaths in American men next to skin cancer? Do you know that the prostate is a vital part of a mans reproductive system? Do you know men can have both benign and cancerous growths in the prostate gland? Most importantly, do you know the five warning signs of prostate cancer? Every man should know when to take action.
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Chronic Lower Back Pain
There are many reasons you may experience lower back pain, but if its something thats been bothering you for awhile, it could be a sign of something more serious than sore muscles or bad posture. It can be easy to ignore chronic low back pain and miss it as a prostate cancer symptom, says Tempe, Arizona-based naturopathic oncologist Heather Paulson, ND. If you have low back pain thats not getting better with treatment, be sure to check your PSA and rule out prostate cancer. Sometimes its the first sign youll notice.
Symptoms Of Prostate Cancer
Once a tumor causes your prostate gland to swell, or once cancer spreads beyond your prostate, you may have symptoms including:
- The need to pee often, especially at night
- Trouble starting or stopping a stream of urine
- A weak stream or one that starts and stops
- Leaking pee when you laugh or cough
- Not being able to pee standing up
- Pain or burning when you pee
- Pain or burning when you ejaculate
- Less fluid when you ejaculate
- Blood in your pee or semen
- Pressure or pain in your rectum
- Pain or stiffness in your lower back, hips, pelvis, or thighs
- New trouble getting an erection
These arenât symptoms of the cancer itself. They happen because the cancer growth is blocking your prostate.
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What Are The Symptoms Of Prostate Cancer
If you have any symptoms that worry you, be sure to see your doctor right away. They may be caused by conditions other than prostate cancer.
Different people have different symptoms for prostate cancer. Some men do not have symptoms at all.
If you have any of the following symptoms, be sure to see your doctor right away
- Difficulty starting urination.
- Weak or interrupted flow of urine.
- Frequent urination, especially at night.
- Difficulty emptying the bladder completely.
- Pain or burning during urination.
- Blood in the urine or semen.
- Pain in the back, hips, or pelvis that doesnt go away.
- Painful ejaculation.
Keep in mind that these symptoms may be caused by conditions other than prostate cancer.
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