How To Determine If You Have Prostate Cancer

When To Contact A Medical Professional

• Less urine than usual
• Back, side, or abdominal pain
• Blood or pus in your urine

Also call if:

• Your bladder does not feel completely empty after you urinate.
• You take medicines that may cause urinary problems, such as diuretics, antihistamines, antidepressants, or sedatives. DO NOT stop or change your medicines without talking to your provider.
• You have tried self-care steps for 2 months and symptoms have not improved.

Other Conditions That Can Cause Urinary Symptoms

• Benign prostatic hyperplasia BPH is when the prostate gland grows larger. BPH is common in middle-aged and elderly men because the prostate gland often gets bigger as you get older. BPH is not cancerous but it may cause prostate urinary symptoms.
• ProstatitisProstatitis means that the prostate gland has become inflamed. It can be caused by an infection in the prostate gland. It is not a form of prostate cancer. Symptoms can include pain in your testicles, pain when passing urine or an uncomfortable feeling when sitting down.

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External Beam Radiation Therapy

With EBRT, radiation usually in the form of X-ray photons is focused from a source outside the body onto the prostate and, if needed, surrounding lymph node areas. In preparation for the therapy, internal markers are implanted in the prostate, using a procedure similar to prostate biopsy theyâre used to help align and target the prostate with the radiation beam. A planning CT scan is then performed to locate the prostate gland in relation to the surrounding structures and organs. The resulting images are used to make a treatment plan that targets the prostate gland while protecting healthy surrounding tissues .

Most radiation today is given as a type of EBRT known as intensity-modulated radiation therapy , in which the shape and intensity of several fine radiation beams can be varied during treatment to minimize damage to surrounding tissues. At UCSF, patients also benefit from image-guided radiation therapy , where the prostate is imaged immediately before the start of each treatment session to verify and adjust the position of the gland for added accuracy. Stereotactic body radiation therapy, or SBRT , is a special type of IMRT/IGRT in which high doses of radiation are given over a small number of treatments .

The schedule for EBRT treatments varies. Treatment may be delivered in one of the following ways:

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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.

Drugs To Treat Cancer Spread To Bone

If prostate cancer spreads to other parts of the body, it almost always goes to the bones first. These areas of cancer spread can cause pain and weak bones that might break. Medicines that can help strengthen the bones and lower the chance of fracture are bisphosphonates and denosumab. Sometimes, radiation, radiopharmaceuticals, or pain medicines are given for pain control.

Side effects of bone medicines

A serious side effect of bisphosphonates and denosumab is damage to the jaw, also called osteonecrosis of the jaw . Most people will need to get approval from their dentist before starting one of these drugs.

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Other Factors That Influence Psa Levels

The PSA blood test alone cannot diagnose prostate cancer. It is possible, although rare, to have prostate cancer without raised PSA levels in the blood. A higher-than-normal PSA level doesnt automatically indicate prostate cancer either. A high PSA level is due to cancer in around one in three cases.

PSA levels can be raised by other factors, including:

• , also known as benign prostatic enlargement .

For this reason, the PSA blood test isnt used in isolation when checking for prostate cancer.

Whats An Alpha Blocker And How Does It Work

The most common one that people have heard about in my practice is called Flomax or tamsulosin. Other examples of this class of medications include Tamsulosin , sildosin , doxazosin, terazosin, alfuzosin

These work by relaxing the prostatic urethra and opening of the bladder.

It typically takes about 7-10 days to notice if there is symptom improvement. So the urologist will typically see you back in 2-4 weeks and see if it is making a difference.

It does work better on an empty stomach.

Tell your doc if you have a sulfa allergy as some of the brands, like tamsulosin, may cause you to have an allergic reaction.

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What Happens Without Treatment

Physicians will sometimes talk about a particular diseases natural history or typical progression if it is left untreated indefinitely.

With regard to prostate cancer, most cases of the disease are discovered while the cancer is still confined to the prostate itself. This is called local disease or localized disease.

The disease is easiest to treat while it is confined to the prostate. At this stage, surgery and radiation are most likely to be curative and completely kill or remove whatever cancer cells are present.

If left untreated, however, prostate cancer can proceed on a number of different paths.

As Screening Falls Will More Men Die From Prostate Cancer

In active monitoring, men with localized prostate cancer do not get surgery or radiation right after theyre diagnosed. Instead, they have regular biopsies, blood tests, and MRIs to see if their cancer is progressing. If it is, they can receive treatment.

Although some oncologists advise men with early, low-grade prostate cancer to choose active surveillance and professional groups such as the American Society of Clinical Oncology recommend it many patients recoil at what sounds like lets just wait for your cancer to become really advanced. A decade ago fewer than 10 percent of men diagnosed with prostate cancer chose monitoring, UCLA researchers found. But that is changing. Now at least half of men do.

That made sense to Garth Callaghan, author of the best-selling Napkin Notes, a book of missives he tucked into his daughters lunch box. Diagnosed with early prostate cancer in 2012, he said, none of the choices seemed particularly attractive to a 43-year-old man who dreaded the possibility of side effects of surgery or radiation, including incontinence and impotence. I was completely torn. My previous experience was, just get it out of my body. But after his doctor explained that prostate cancer is grossly overtreated in the United States, I did a complete 180 and chose active monitoring.

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What Are The Stages Of Prostate Cancer

Your healthcare provider uses the Gleason score and Grade Groups to stage prostate cancer based on its projected aggressiveness. To get this information, the pathologist:

• Assigns a grade to each type of cell in your sample. Cells are graded on a scale of three to five . Samples that test in the one to two range are considered normal tissue.
• Adds together the two most common grades to get your Gleason score .
• Uses the Gleason score to place you into a Grade Group ranging from one to five. A Gleason score of six puts you in Grade Group 1 . A score of nine or higher puts you in Grade Group five . Samples with a higher portion of more aggressive cells receive a higher Grade Group.

What An Enlarged Prostate Gland Feels Like

The symptoms that come with an enlarged prostate vary from man to man, but they usually start out mild and get worse over time. Here are a few of the signs you might notice.

• An urgent need to urinate
• Frequent need to urinate
• The need to urinate frequently through the night
• A weak urine stream
• Urination that starts and stops
• Trouble starting to urinate
• Trouble emptying your bladder completely

While these are the most common signs of BPH and are more annoying than medically problematic, a few symptoms require immediate attention, including the inability to urinate and blood in your urine.

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The Risks And Signs Of Late

In the Community

2019 Gentlemen Stakes for Prostate Cancer

Since 2006 we have held annual fundraisers for prostate cancer awareness and research programs. Whether itâs a 5k/10k event or a celebration for our cancer survivors, we believe in giving back. These events benefit ZERO â the End of Prostate Cancer. A number of local and national businesses also sponsor the event.

The risk of being diagnosed with advanced-stage prostate cancer is less than one in 10. Yet thats no reason to doubt the realities of such a prognosis.

Just 7% of men have advanced-stage prostate cancer at the time of diagnosis. For these men, this highly treatable disease becomes a far more serious issue.

Once the cancer has spread beyond the prostate, only about 30% of men survive for more than five years. That compares with a near-100% survival rate when the cancer is detected early. And almost all cases of prostate cancer are detected early , thanks to preventive screening.

But unfortunately, some men are at a higher likelihood of being diagnosed with late-stage prostate cancer, even if they start getting screenings at the recommended age of 50.

This is What Late-Stage Prostate Cancer Means

The prostate is a small gland located below the bladder and in front of the rectum. Prostate cancer occurs when abnormal cells in the gland begin to divide uncontrollably, forming an invasive tumor.

Who Is at Greater Risk of Late-Stage Prostate Cancer?

Look for These Symptoms

Further Testing For Advanced Cancer

If there’s a significant chance the cancer has spread from your prostate to other parts of the body, further tests may be recommended.

These include:

• an MRI scan, CT scan or PET scan these scans build a detailed picture of the inside of your body
• an isotope bone scan, which can tell if the cancer has spread to your bones a small amount of radiation dye is injected into the vein and then collects in parts of the bone where there are any abnormalities

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Bill Turnbull Urges Men To Press Your Gp On Prostate Cancer

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Prostate cancer has few symptoms, meaning for many men they wont realise there is an issue until the cancer begins to spread. In order to avoid this, heres how to assess your risk for prostate cancer, and when to speak to your doctor.

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Questions To Ask The Doctor

• What treatment do you think is best for me?
• Whats the goal of this treatment? Do you think it could cure the cancer?
• Will treatment include surgery? If so, who will do the surgery?
• What will the surgery be like?
• Will I need other types of treatment, too?
• Whats the goal of these treatments?
• What side effects could I have from these treatments?
• What can I do about side effects that I might have?
• Is there a clinical trial that might be right for me?
• What about special vitamins or diets that friends tell me about? How will I know if they are safe?
• How soon do I need to start treatment?
• What should I do to be ready for treatment?
• Is there anything I can do to help the treatment work better?
• Whats the next step?

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Can A Blood Test Determine If You Have Prostate Cancer

When it comes to prostate cancer, screenings play a key role in saving lives. Earlier detection when there are no symptoms leads to earlier treatment and better outcomes. And the good news is that many prostate cancer screenings can be done with a simple blood test. But thats just the start.

Learn more about how the PSA is the first step in the prostate cancer journey.

Understanding the PSA

For more than 20 years, there has been a blood test to monitor men for high levels of a protein called a prostate-specific antigen, or PSA, that is often associated with prostate cancer. Unfortunately, this test is not perfect many harmless conditions can cause heightened levels of this protein, leading to unnecessary tests and procedures that carry their own risk.

The uncertainty over the value of the PSA test led the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force in 2012 to recommend it only be given to people at high risk of prostate cancer. Other groups, including the American Urological Association, opposed this decision at the time.

But that recommendation has been softened. Instead of advising against this test for most men, the task force now suggests that men aged 55 to 69 should talk to their doctor about its risks and potential benefits.

Dr. Vipul Patel, a urologist and robotic surgeon at the AdventHealth, calls that a step in the positive direction.

If youre over 50 years old, get PSA screening and get a rectal prostate exam, he says.

What the PSA Can Reveal

Signs And Symptoms Of Prostate Cancer

Most prostate cancers are found early, through screening. Early prostate cancer usually causes no symptoms. More advanced prostate cancers can sometimes cause symptoms, such as:

• Problems urinating, including a slow or weak urinary stream or the need to urinate more often, especially at night
• Trouble getting an erection
• Pain in the hips, back , chest , or other areas from cancer that has spread to bones
• Weakness or numbness in the legs or feet, or even loss of bladder or bowel control from cancer pressing on the spinal cord

Most of these problems are more likely to be caused by something other than prostate cancer. For example, trouble urinating is much more often caused by benign prostatic hyperplasia , a non-cancerous growth of the prostate. Still, its important to tell your health care provider if you have any of these symptoms so that the cause can be found and treated, if needed. Some men might need more tests to check for prostate cancer.

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Some Early Signs Of Prostate Cancer

Some potential early signs of prostate cancer include the following:

Frequent urination, especially at night

In addition, there can be weak and interrupted urine flow, unusual pain around the prostate when sitting, swelling in the lower back, feet, and legs, abnormal bowel function or urinary habits, and weight loss.

Each additional symptom you have could indicate a problem, so do not delay in scheduling a screening appointment with Cleveland Urology in Cleveland, OH.

Watchful Waiting With An Enlarged Prostate

When the symptoms of an enlarged prostate gland are mild, with low scores on the BPH Impact Index , it may be best to wait before starting any treatment whats known as watchful waiting.

With regular checkups once a year or more often, doctors can watch for early problems and signs that the condition is posing a health risk or a major inconvenience. Thats where the BPH Index is especially helpful, Westney tells WebMD. It lets us know how high the symptom score is ⦠when to start treatment.

The driving force in treatment, she explains, is whether the symptoms are affecting your quality of life and whether a blockage is causing serious complications, such as inability to urinate, blood in the urine, bladder stones, kidney failure, or other bladder problems.

A few questions to ask yourself:

• How severe are your symptoms?
• Do symptoms prevent you from doing things you enjoy?
• Do they seriously affect your quality of life?
• Are they getting worse?

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Positron Emission Tomography Scan

A PET scan is similar to a bone scan, in that a slightly radioactive substance is injected into the blood, which can then be detected with a special camera. But PET scans use different tracers that collect mainly in cancer cells. The most common tracer for standard PET scans is FDG, which is a type of sugar. Unfortunately, this type of PET scan isnt very useful in finding prostate cancer cells in the body.

However, newer tracers, such as fluciclovine F18, sodium fluoride F18, and choline C11, have been found to be better at detecting prostate cancer cells.

Other newer tracers, such as Ga 68 PSMA-11, 18F-DCFPyl , and Ga 68 gozetotide , attach to prostate-specific membrane antigen , a protein that is often found in large amounts on prostate cancer cells. Tests using these types of tracers are sometimes referred to as PSMA PET scans.

These newer types of PET scans are most often used if its not clear if prostate cancer has spread. For example, one of these tests might be done if the results of a bone scan arent clear, or if a man has a rising PSA level after initial treatment but its not clear where the cancer is in the body. PSMA PET scans can also be used to help determine if the cancer can be treated with a radiopharmaceutical that targets PSMA.

Doctors are still learning about the best ways to use these newer types of PET scans, and some of them might not be available yet in all imaging centers.