What Should I Do If I Have Pain
Let your doctor or nurse know about any pain you have as soon as possible. The earlier you ask for help, the easier it will be to get your pain under control. With the right treatment and management, your doctor and nurse should be able to help you control your pain.
Dont think that you are complaining too much or that you should put up with pain. You shouldnt have to accept pain as a normal part of having cancer. Pain will affect your daily life if it isnt properly controlled.
As well as treatments, there are things you can do yourself that might help with your pain.
What questions might my doctor or nurse ask about my pain?
Your doctor or nurse will ask you questions about your pain to try to get as much information about it as possible. This will help them work out the best treatment for you. They might ask you the following questions.
- Where is your pain?
- How bad is it?
- What does it feel like? For example, is it a stabbing pain, or a dull ache?
- When did the pain start? How often do you get it? How long does it last?
- Does it wake you at night?
- Does anything help?
- Have you tried any pain-relieving medicines? Did they help?
- Does anything make it worse?
- How does your pain make you feel? For example, do you feel anxious or depressed? Does this affect the pain?
- How does the pain affect your daily life?
Can Prostate Cancer Spread
Medically Reviewed by: Dr. BautistaUpdated on: November 18, 2019
Like other cancers, prostate cancer can spread if the cancer cells grow out of control. At ITC, we treat all different types of cancer and know that patients often have a lot of questions surrounding their diagnosis.
We often are asked what is prostate cancer? Can prostate cancer spread? How is it diagnosed? And more. At Immunity Therapy Center, we know that each diagnosis is unique and every patient is different which is why we focus on a holistic approach to prostate cancer. And we believe that when patients have the knowledge, theyre more likely to take control of their health.
To give you the knowledge to prepare, lets take a closer look at prostate cancer, what symptoms to look for, and how it can spread.
How Is It Diagnosed And How Fast Does It Grow
Prostate cancer often grows slowly, and most men with early-stage prostate cancer dont notice any symptoms. Symptoms are often noticed later on as the cancer grows. The signs include trouble urinating, blood in the urine, erectile dysfunction, and pain in the back, hips, ribs, or other bones.
According to the American Cancer Society 3 , prostate cancer tests include the following:
Though there are plenty of tests that one can go through to check if you have prostate cancer, there are other ways of how to check for prostate cancer at home.
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A Primer On Prostate Cancer
Even though prostate cancer is one of the most diagnosed cancers in America, on average men have only a three percent risk of actually dying from the disease. Prostate cancer occurs in the prostate gland, the gland that produces the fluid that makes up semen. Tumors are often slow-growing and highly treatable. However, patients sometimes experience no symptoms until the cancer has spread. Thus, early detection by your doctor is important. Treatments for prostate cancer include: chemotherapy, surgery and radiation.
Its important for you to get your prostate checked. The American Urological Association recommends you discuss the benefits and limitations of these tests with your doctor:
A digital rectal exam once a year after age 40, or earlier if you are having symptoms. Although some men consider this test embarrassing, it is a quick, simple procedure that could save your life.A PSA blood test once a year for men over 50 or earlier for men in high risk groups, such as African-Americans or those with a family history of prostate problems.
If you have a positive DRE or PSA, your doctor may order a biopsy to determine if cancer is involved.
Connection Between Ejaculation And Prostate Cancer
The amount of ejaculations included those from sexual intercourse, masturbation and nocturnal emissions . The one study found that men who ejaculated 21 or more time a month had a 33% decreased chance of developing prostate cancer compared to those who ejaculated 4-7 times a month. The second study showed that men who averaged 4-7 ejaculations a week showed a 36% decreased chance of developing prostate cancer, before the age of 70, as compared to men who ejaculated less than 2-3 times a week.
Its not known how this increased rate of ejaculation leads to a decreased risk of prostate cancer. The theory behind it is that ejaculation expels potentially harmful or irritating substances from the prostate, thereby decreasing the chances of the occurrence of a malignancy.
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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 âbiochemical recurrence.â
Castration-Resistant Prostate Cancer
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Bladder Cancer: What You Need To Know
Bladder Cancer is most common in men over the age of 60. There are two broad categories of bladder cancer based on what symptoms you may be experiencing, including:
- Non-Muscle Invasive Bladder Cancer Approximately 70 percent of patients have non-muscle invasive cancer
- Muscle-Invasive And Advanced Bladder Cancer Between 20 percent and 25 percent of bladder cancer cases are muscle-invasive
Treatment Options for Bladder Cancer
We know processing this information and planning treatment can be difficult. Our doctors are here to help make you to feel at ease throughout the treatment process. Here are some things you can expect with the different treatment options. If the cancer has spread into the bladder wall or outside the bladder, treatment may include:
- Cystectomy With Urinary Diversion In men, the bladder and prostate are identified, dissected and removed. Surrounding lymph nodes are removed to assess the extent or spread of the cancer.
- Chemotherapy A systemic treatment in which drugs are given throughout the entire body. Its designed to kill cancer cells. Typically, it is administered intravenously .
- Radiation Therapy with Chemotherapy Radiation uses high-energy x-rays to destroy cancer cells. The addition of systemic chemotherapy makes cancer cells more vulnerable to the killing effects of radiation. Radiation therapy is also used to relieve symptoms of advanced bladder.
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How Soon Can We Detect This
One of the main advantages of surgery over radiotherapy for prostate cancer is that following prostate removal, the PSA should be very low , which we can of course detect with blood tests. If metastasis occurs, because the metastatic cells originated in the prostate and therefore make PSA, the PSA level in the blood starts to rise. Once it has reached a given threshold additional or salvage treatment will be discussed.
A PSA level of more than 0.2 ng/ml defines biochemical recurrence. At this stage the cancer is still much too small to be seen on scanning. If it can be seen on a scan it is termed clinical recurrence, which generally does not occur until the PSA level is more than 0.5 ng/ml. Symptoms, such as bone pain, dont usually occur until the PSA is more than 20 ng/ml.
Testicles In Prostate Cancer
Testicles are located in the scrotum below the penis. The scrotal sac is the exterior structure that protects the testicles by ascending or descending according to the temperature. The testicles produce sex cells called sperm that are sensitive to high temperatures. A sperm cell will combine with the females egg cell for reproduction, however, for any of the mans sperm cells to reach the egg, they require a fluid medium produced by the seminal vesicles and the prostate gland. Testicles also produce the sex hormone testosterone which is responsible for producing the primary male characteristics for the fetus in utero as well as the secondary sexual characteristics that develop during puberty. Testosterone fuels the production and growth of the prostate gland, and when a man develops prostate cancer, the growth of the organ can be stopped by removing testosterone. One way therapists ablate the amount of testosterone in the body is by surgically removing the testicles in a process called surgical castration or orchiectomy. Surgical castration removed only the testicles, not the scrotal sac, so men who opt for surgical castration may also request the insertion of a testicular prosthesis.
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Prostate Cancer And Incontinence
Incontinence the inability to control urine flow is a common side effect of all therapies directed at the prostate gland. Most patients do eventually regain complete urinary control. Exercises to strengthen the sphincter and surrounding pelvic muscles can help you regain urinary control. These are called Kegel exercises. A training program called biofeedback helps reinforce the proper performance of Kegel exercises. Medications may also help relieve incontinence. A male sling is a surgical option, as is an artificial urinary sphincter which can be surgically inserted in cases of severe incontinence. Ask your doctor about these options.
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Common Signs And Symptoms Of Testicular And Prostate Cancer
Prostate cancer and testicular cancer can be cured, but as with most cancers, the earlier the treatment, the better the chances for success. Thats why its important to see a doctor if you have any symptoms that might point to cancer.
Testicular and prostate cancer have different symptoms, and luckily, your doctor will often find that the cause of the symptoms is something less frightening than cancer.
But you should never ignore troubling symptoms and just hope they go away. You could lose valuable treatment time. And if your doctor discovers a more benign cause of your symptoms, then you dont have to waste any more energy worrying.
Possible signs of testicular cancer
Testicular cancer symptoms can include the following:
- A lump or swelling in one of the testicles
- Fluid buildup in the scrotum
- A heavy feeling in the scrotum
- Pain, numbness, or other discomfort in a testicle or in the scrotum
- Enlarged or tender breasts
- Blood in urine or semen
- Painful ejaculation
- Difficulty in getting an erection
These symptoms are most likely caused by something other than cancer, but you should see a doctor to be sure, and to get treatment to relieve the problem.
Once prostate cancer has advanced, patients may experience
- Pain or stiffness in the hips, thighs, pelvis, ribs, or lower back.
- Weight loss and nausea or vomiting
- Fatigue
If you have any symptoms that concern you, the staff at Affiliated Urologists are happy to talk with you.
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The Difference Between Prostate Cancer And Testicular Cancer
Men, young and old, listen up! The major health risks for ALL men include both prostate cancer and testicular cancer. The good news is that both cancers have high cure rates and can be successfully treated, as long as the cancer is detected early and has not spread to other parts of the body.
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Male Fertility And Infertility
Fertility refers to having the ability to conceive, or being able to have a child. For males, fertility means they are able to father a child through normal sexual activity. A persons fertility depends on their reproductive organs working as they should and other factors, such as when and how often they are having sex, certain hormones, and if their partner has any problems with fertility.
When a person cannot have a child, this is called infertility, or being infertile. For males, infertility means they are not able to father a child through normal sexual activity. Doctors usually consider a person infertile when they have not been able to conceive a child after 12 or more months of regular sexual activity.
Problems with fertility can also be called reproductive problemsoralterations. They happen when certain hormone levels are abnormally low or high or if reproduction organs are removed or arent working properly. Some people never find out why they are having fertility problems. Many experts believe stress and anxiety can cause changes that play a part in infertility.
People with certain types of cancer or who are getting treatment for cancer may have fertility problems. Children and teenagers who have cancer are often of special concern. You can read more about specific adult and childhood cancers in Cancer A to Z and can learn more about how fertility might be affected in How Cancer and Cancer Treatment Can Affect Fertility.
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Open Or Laparoscopic Radical Prostatectomy
In the more traditional approach to prostatectomy, called anopen prostatectomy, the surgeon operates through a single long skin incision to remove the prostate and nearby tissues. This type of surgery is done less often than in the past.
In a laparoscopic prostatectomy, the surgeon makes several smaller incisions and uses special long surgical tools to remove the prostate. The surgeon either holds the tools directly, or uses a control panel to precisely move robotic arms that hold the tools. This approach to prostatectomy has become more common in recent years. If done by experienced surgeons, the laparoscopic radical prostatectomy can give results similar to the open approach.
Prostate Cancer: Pain In Testicles Could Indicate The Cancer Has Spread
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Prostate cancer can develop when cells in the prostate gland start to grow in an uncontrolled way. In most men prostate cancer grows slowly and may not cause any problems. But some prostate cancers grow quickly and need early treatment to stop or delay them from growing.
Many mens prostates get larger as they get older because of a non-cancerous condition called prostate enlargement, said the NHS.
The health site added: Signs that the cancer may have spread include bone and back pain, a loss of appetite, pain in the testicles and unexplained weight loss.
Prostate cancer does not usually cause any symptoms until the cancer has grown large enough to put pressure on the tube that carries urine from the bladder out of the penis .
Symptoms of prostate cancer can include needing to pee more frequently, needing to rush to the toilet, difficulty in starting to pee, taking a long time while peeing, weak flow, feeling that your bladder has not emptied fully or blood in the urine.
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Case Report Of Metastatic Prostate Cancer To Testicles: An
Prostate cancer may spread to the testis due to retrograde venous extension, An orchiectomy is a surgical procedure to remove one or both testicles, we thought it was more important to identify the high risk prostate cancer associated with very high PSA or known histologically to be prone to spread, or it can spread to lymph nodes in the abdomen or pelvis, Semen is the milky fluid that carries sperm from the testicles through the penis during ejaculation, The study reported that men who received testosterone therapy were subsequently diagnosed with aggressive prostate cancer at the rate of 0.58 per 1, with around 40, Although further research is needed, he said, The testicles produce sex cells called sperm that are sensitive to high temperatures, it often goes to the bones first, Since CYP17 inhibitors dont interfere with the testicles ability to produce testosterone
Bph Vs Prostate Cancer
Benign prostatic hyperplasia is a very common non-cancerous condition that affects many men from the age of about 50.
The prostate gland gets bigger as you get older and sometimes presses on the tube you pass urine through . This can cause problems with passing urine.
In both BPH and prostate cancer, the prostate gland gets larger.
BPH is benign which means its not cancer and it cant spread.
Prostate cancer can spread to other parts of your body.
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Testicular pain may happen in one or both testicles, said the Cleveland Clinic.
The health site continued: Soreness may be acute or chronic .
Potential causes include injury, twisting, infection, hernia, nerve damage, fluid build-up, inflammation and cancer.
Testicular pain may be acute, meaning that its onset is sudden, and its duration is limited.
The pain is considered chronic if it is constant or intermittent and it lasts three months or longer.
Pain may occur in one testicle or both testicles.
The sensation of pain cannot be measured directly, and this is why it is imperative to speak with your GP about the possible cause for this pain.
Blood and urine tests may be performed to rule out any infections as possible causes.
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